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Netherlands–African Business Council

Holland–Africa Poultry Partners

Poultry in Ethiopia:a survey of production,

value chain and marketing of commercial poultry in

Ethiopia.

2 The Holland Africa Poultry Partners 3

Contents

Preface

Executive summary

Map of Ethiopia

Introduction

1 Ethiopia in brief: economic developments

and government structure 7

1.1 Economic developments in Ethiopia 7

1.2 Ethiopian Government 9

1.2.1 Government Structure 9

1.2.2 Government Policies 9

1.2.3 Government Extension Service 9

2 Poultry production in Ethiopia 12

2.1 Livestock production in Ethiopia 12

2.2 Poultry production in Ethiopia 13

2.3 Poultry production systems 13

2.4 Developments in commercial poultry keeping 14

2.5 Observations during farm visits July 2012 15

2.6 Cost price calculations 17

3 Poultry value chain analysis 20

3.1 Introduction 20

3.2 Poultry value chain structure 20

3.2.1 Value chain functions 20

3.2.2 Value chain inputs 20

3.3 Institutional and policy environment 23

3.4 Overview of hatcheries in Ethiopia 25

4 Poultry Veterinary Health strengthening in Ethiopia 26

4.1 Introduction 26

4.2 Summary of main findings 26

4.3 Key players in poultry health 27

4.4 Improvement of poultry health delivery services in Ethiopia 28

5 Training needs assessment 30

5.1 Introduction 30

5.2 Approach 30

5.3 Identification of training needs around Debre Zeit 31

5.4 Identification of training needs around Shire 32

6 SWOT Analysis of the Ethiopian commercial poultry sector 34

7 Consumer Research and Chicken Eggs 35

7.1 Background 35

7.2 The culture of chicken and eggs in Ethiopia 35

7.3 Research results 38

7.4 Additional consumer research 48

7.5 Conclusions 53

7.6 Questionnaire 55

7.7 Research site 62

Poultry in Ethiopia:

a survey of production, value chain and marketingof commercialpoultry inEthiopia.


This report summarizes the findings of various

surveys of the poultry sector in Ethiopia, undertaken

by the consortium with its Ethiopian partners in the

period September – December 2012. The conclusions

from the survey have already been put into action

such as a support programme to strengthen hatcher-

ies, setting up a training and demonstration unit in

which practical training programmes for Ethiopian

poultry farmers can be carried out as well as a support

programme for veterinary poultry services.

From the Holland Africa Poultry Partners, we believe

that there is a good future for poultry keeping in

Ethiopia and we will support the growth through of

the sector through a good collaboration with all

stakeholders of the Ethiopian poultry sector.

Jan Kampschoer

Chairman Holland Africa Poultry Partners

Preface

In February 2011 the Netherlands Africa Business

Council organised a poultry trade mission to Ethiopia.

Although the commercial poultry sector in Ethiopia is

still small, the participants in the mission enthusiasti-

cally decided to continue collaborating with the poul-

try sector in Ethiopia. Back in the Netherlands,

a consortium was formed consisting of companies

in the poultry sector, knowledge institutes and NGO’s.

The Government of the Netherlands decided to

support the consortium and in April 2012 the 2g@

there poultry Ethiopia project was officially launched.

The main objective of the consortium in this project

is to strengthen the poultry sector in Ethiopia by

carrying out research and training activities at all levels

of the poultry value chain and to provide the necessary

inputs needed to further professionalize poultry

keeping in Ethiopia. The consortium will achieve this

contribution to the poultry sector in Ethiopia trough

1) Carrying out the necessary research and

analysis identifying bottlenecks in the

commercial production system in Ethiopia

2) Organising and providing training activities

at all levels in the poultry chain in Ethiopia

3) Providing the necessary inputs needed for a

sustainable growth of the Ethiopian poultry sector.

CVI Central Veterinary Institute

FDRE

CSA Central Statistical Agency

FAO Food and Agricultural Organisation

HPAI High Prevalent Avian Influenza

LPAI Low Prevalent Avian Influenza

NCD New Castle Disease

CIA Central Intelligence Agency

VC Value Chain

VCA Value Chain Analysis

DOC Day Old Chick

VAT Value Added Tax

EVA Ethiopian Veterinary Association

NAHDIC National Animal Health Diagnostic

Investigation Centre

AU African Union

PANVAC Pan African Vaccine Institute

ILRI International Livestock Research Institute

NGO Non-Governmental Organisation

SWOT Strength Weaknesses Opportunities Threats

About the authors

Adriaan Vernooij, Jessica Cornelissen, Alberto Giani and Ivo Claassen

are from Wageningen University and Research, resp. WUR Livestock

Research, WUR Livestock Research, the Centre for Development

Innovation and the Central Veterinary Institute.

Ernst Beitler is from the CAH Vilentum University of Applied

Sciences in Dronten, the Netherlands.

Helmich van Rees is from PTC+, Barneveld, the Netherlands.

Hilde Duns is with the NABC (Netherlands Africa Business Council),

The Hague.

Renske Duns with the NABC (Netherlands Africa Business Council),

The Hague.

Auke Boere with the NABC (Netherlands Africa Business Council),

The Hague.

Saskia Kloezeman is from North South Consulting in Addis Ababa.

Final editor: Adriaan Vernooij

List of tables

Table 1 Country facts

Table 2 Cities of Ethiopia

Table 3 Poultry statistics.

Table 4 Cost price of eggs.

Table 5 Costprice broilers.

List of figures

Figure 1 Major commercial poultry producing areas of

Ethiopia

Figure 2 Hay-box insulated brooder for first rearing

of day old chicks.

Figure 3 Intensive (peri) urban poultry keeping

Figure 4 Small scale cages.

Figure 5 Broiler rearing.

Figure 6 Most broilers are slaughtered on farm.

Figure 7 Value Chain map

List of abbreviations

WUR Wageningen University and Research.

CAH Christian Agricultural Applied University

PTC+ Practical Training Centre

HAPP Holland Africa Poultry Partners

EPPA Ethiopian Poultry Producers Association

NABC Netherlands African Business Council

GDP Gross Domestic Product

MDG Millennium Development Goals

AGP Agricultural Growth Programme

PASDEP Plan for Accelerated and Sustained End to Poverty

CRGE Climate Resilient Green Economy

FTC Farmer Training Centre

MOARD Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development

DA Development Assistant

ATVET Agricultural and Technical Vocational Education

and Training

BOARD Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Development

OOARD Office of Agriculture and Rural Development

PADETES Participatory Demonstration and Training

Extension System

EIAR Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research

SMS Subject Matter Specialist


Results by Sector.

Education: Primary school completion rate (grade 5) increased to

83 % in 2009/10, from 65 % in 2006/07.

Gender parity: For grades 1-4, the ratio of girls to boys went from

89 % in 2006/07 to 91 % in 2009/10; grades 5-8 increased from 76 %

to 91 % over the same period.

Health: The child immunization rate increased from 70 (2005) to

82 % (2010).

Water: A total of 1.5 million people in rural areas and 150,000 in urban

areas have been provided with access to improved water sources from

2004 to 2010.

Roads: The proportion of roads in good and fair condition as a share

of total classified roads increased from 22 % in 1997 to 60 % in 2010.

Energy: The number of towns and rural villages with electricity access

was 648 in 2004/05, has increased to 5,163 in 2009/10.

Development Challenges.

The main challenge for Ethiopia is to continue and accelerate the

progress made in recent years toward the Millennium Development

Goals (MDGs) and to address the causes of poverty among its popu-

lation. The government is already devoting a very high share of its

budget to pro-poor programs and investments. Large scale donor

support will continue to provide a vital contribution in the near-term

to finance the levels of spending needed to meet these challenges.

However, even if donor support is increased, using aid effectively will

require Ethiopia to improve governance, empower local authorities,

and become more accountable to its citizens.

Over the past two decades, there has been significant progress in

key human development indicators: primary school enrolments have

quadrupled, child mortality has been cut in half, and the number

of people with access to clean water has more than doubled. More

recently, poverty reduction has accelerated. The poverty headcount

measured by nationally representative household surveys was 44 %

in 1999/2000, but fell to 39 % in 2004/05 and further down to 30 %

in 2010/11.

These gains, together with more recent moves to strengthen the fight

against malaria and HIV/AIDS, paint a picture of improved well-being

in Ethiopia. Notwithstanding the progress in critical aspects of human

development, Ethiopia needs considerable investment and improved

policies to achieve some of the Millennium Development Goals by 2015,

given the country’s low starting point.

1 Ethiopia in brief: economic developments and government structure. Author: Adriaan Vernooij.

1.1 Economic developments in Ethiopia

Ethiopia, with a population of about 84 million (2012), is the

second-most populous country in Sub-Saharan Africa. At US$390,

Ethiopia’s per capita income is much lower than the Sub-Saharan

African average of US$1,165 in FY 2010, ranking it as the sixth poorest

country in the world.

Agriculture is the mainstay of Ethiopia’s economy providing employ-

ment to 85% of the population whereas industry contributes about

5% and services 10%. Livestock and agriculture contribute about 43.5%

of the GDP and 61% of total export. Industry contributes to 13.4% and

services 43.1% of GDP.

While Ethiopia’s economy is expected to continue to grow at a

healthy pace, its macro situation will remain under stress in the

foreseeable future. Ethiopia made progress in tackling the 2008-2011

macroeconomic challenges, but the recent surge of inflation depicts

the country’s vulnerable macroeconomic condition. The annual

end-of-period inflation, which stood at 16.5 % in February 2011,

more than doubled reaching 36 % in February 2012. The food inflation

rate increased from 13 % to 47 % while non-food inflation, moderately

decreased from 22 % to 21 % during the same period. It is unlikely that

inflation will rapidly fall towards the GTP goals of single digits within

2012. Monetary factors played a key role in driving the inflation rate

in Ethiopia. For instance, reserve money used by the National Bank as

monetary policy anchor grew by 51 % in February 2011. This was largely

due to the accumulation of foreign exchange reserves without any

offsetting mechanism and increased borrowing by public enterprises

for infrastructure investment which in effect contributed to the increase

in money supply.

Executive summary

With a GDP growth rate of 8.7, Ethiopia has over the past years been

one of the fastest growing economies in Africa. With a relatively low

urban population (17 %), agriculture is still the mainstay of the econo-

my, contributing to 44 % of the GDP and 61 % of total exports.

Through the Agricultural Growth Programme, the Government of

Ethiopian stimulates enhanced market performance and value addition

in various sectors.

Commercial poultry production is characterized by a large number of

small scale farms, and a few medium to large scale poultry farms.

Exact figures on the total volume of egg and broiler production are not

available. Production is concentrated mainly in the Addis, Debre Zeit

and Adama areas, with some small concentration around northern and

southern rural towns. Of the 39 hatcheries in the country, 50 % are not

working presently, 40 % perform below standards and only a few show

good hatchability records.

Farmers lack basic knowledge on good poultry keeping practices and

the inputs needed (feed, vaccines, drugs, hardware such as drinkers

and feeders) are scarcely available. The demand for poultry is growing

in a market which is characterized by seasonally fluctuating prices as a

result of religious fasting periods.

The value chain for both eggs and meat production has been

analysed, showing poor chain integration, complicated procedures

to get loans and credit, low organisation rates (e.g. cooperatives) and

a high dependency on import of various necessary inputs.

A training needs assessment has been carried out, identifying needs

for training in every part of the value chain. Practical farmers train-

ing is necessary, but also training for hatchery staff, extensionists and

entrepreneurial or business development training for investors in the

poultry industry.

Maintaining good poultry health is essential for a good growth of the

poultry sector. There is a public role for preventing infectious diseases

through field monitoring activities and vaccination campaigns.

Prevention and treatment of diseases on farm are part of practical

training activities.

It can be concluded that poultry production in Ethiopia shows good

perspectives. Demand is growing, the physical climate in the country is

conducive, but many points in the value chain as well as government

facilitation, still need addressing as part of a further professionaliza-

tion of poultry production. Cooperation within the value chain needs

improvement, also to overcome seasonal fluctuations in demand.

Figure 1: Major commercial poultry producing areas of Ethiopia

Awassa

Debre Zeit

Sire, Aksum Mekelle area


1.2.2 Government Policies.

The most important policy underlying agricultural development is

the Agricultural Growth Programme (AGP). Apart from the AGP, the

government has also formulated a plan for accelerated and sustained

development to end poverty (PASDEP) by promoting, among other

things, commercialization of agriculture and growth of private sector

and infrastructure (especially roads, energy, and irrigation). Agriculture

Growth Program (AGP) is aimed primarily at increasing agricultural pro-

ductivity in a sustainable manner, enhancing market performance and

facilitating value addition in selected targeted areas. AGP is a broad

based program that attempts to improve the whole range of produc-

tion, marketing and agro-processing of agricultural products through

enhancing productivity, value addition, and market and irrigation

infrastructure. The program will be implemented along the value chain

dealing with stakeholders including producers, assemblers/traders,

processors, distributors, exporters, retailers and finally consumers.

Bottom-up planning process will be practiced to give greater power to

kebele and woreda-level development initiatives with particular at-

tention to ensuring equal and active participation of both women and

men. The programme will however work in selected areas only, due

financial resources available. Poultry improvement is also included and

is implemented through the distribution of layer doc’s and pullets.

The Ethiopian Government has recently initiated the Climate-Resilient

Green Economy (CRGE) initiative to protect the country from the adverse

effects of climate change and to build a green economy that will help

realise its ambition of reaching middle income status before 2025.

The plan: To follow a green growth path that fosters development and

sustainability.

1.2.3 Government extension service.

The Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (MOARD, www.eap.

gov.et) is responsible for developing and refining the overall national

agricultural and rural development strategies and policies for the coun-

try, with input from the regions and other stakeholders. Within this

strategy, the MOARD establishes the overall national extension policy,

providing financial support for the extension system and supporting

the regions with training and other capacity-strengthening activities.

The actual provision of public agricultural extension and advisory

services has been decentralized:

Regional Level

Each region has a Bureau of Agriculture and Rural Development, BOARD.

The regions and their BOARDs are responsible for agricultural and rural

development policy implementation, coordination, and evaluation.

Each BOARD has a head and a number of technical and administrative

staff, including department heads. These personnel provide technical

and administrative support, as well as supervision and monitoring for

the woreda- and kebele-level extension offices. Each region’s agri-

cultural advisory support is internally divided according to major agro

ecological zones, providing more detailed technical and administrative

support, especially for the large regions.

The economic growth is largely driven by the agriculture and services

sector. But also the rise in land prices (or rather the price of lease

exchange in a country where all land belongs to the government and is

given out in long term leases) is one of the driving factors behind the

economic growth and is related to the current building boom in the

country. Furthermore, government income is also highly dependent

on the high import tariffs posed upon the importation of a variety of

goods. As these aren’t strong pillars that economic growth can sustain-

ably be based upon, it is expected to negatively impact the growth rate

in the near future.

1.2 Ethiopian government

1.2.1 Government structure.

The Federal Democratic Government of Ethiopia is divided into nine

Regional States and two Administrative states (Addis Ababa City admin-

istration and Dire Dawa city council). The national regional states as

well as the two cities administrative councils are further divided into

various zones with in total eight hundred woredas and around 15,000

kebeles (5,000 Urban & 10,000 Rural)

The main legislative body is the house of people’s representatives, with

547 delegates. Elections take place every five years.

In total there are 21 ministries, amongst the Ministry of Agriculture and

Rural Development (http://www.moa.gov.et/), which includes livestock

and veterinary affairs. Some further background information is avail-

able the Ethiopian Agricultural Portal (http://www.eap.gov.et/).

Largest cities or towns in Ethiopia (CSA1 Estimates for 1 July 2012)

Table 2 Cities of Ethiopia

Rank City name Region Population

1 Addis Ababa Addis Ababa 3.040.740

2 Mekele Tigray 273.601

3 Adama Oromia 271.562

4 Dire Dawa Dire Dawa 262.884

5 Gondar Amhara 254.450

6 Awasa SNNPR 212.665

7 Bahir Dar Amhara 191.015

8 Jimma Oromia 149.166

9 Dessie Amhara 147.592

10 Jijiga Somali 147.482

1 Central Statistical Agency.

• Theroadsnetworkshouldincreasefrom49,000kmto64,500km

by 2015;

• Powergenerationcapacitywillincreasefromthecurrent2,000MWto

8,000 MW, and the number of customers from the current 2 million

to 4 million by 2015;

• Constructionof2,395kmofrailwayline;and,

• AchievementofallMDGs.

The plan also aims to reduce the maternal mortality rate by more

than half from 590 per 100,000 to 267 per 100,000. While some

aims are extremely ambitious, the directions of the GTP are

consistent with the core priorities of the World Bank’s strategy

for Africa’s Future and respond to the needs of the country.

This plan will become the anchor for the Bank’s new Country

Partnership Strategy which is expected to be finalized in third

quarter of 2012.

The Government of Ethiopia’s current five-year development plan

(2010/11-2014/15), the Growth and Transformation Plan (GTP), is geared

towards fostering broad-based development in a sustainable manner

to achieve the MDGs. The GTP envisions a major leap in terms of not

only economic structure and income levels but also the level of social

indicators. Key goals include:

• Rapideconomicgrowth,targetedfor11%peryearatworstand,

at best, to double the size of the economy by 2015, with GDP per

capita expected to reach US$698 by 2015;

• Agriculturalproductionistodouble,toensurefoodsecurityin

Ethiopia for the first time;

• Anincreasedcontributionfromtheindustrialsector,particularly

focused on increased production in sugar, textiles, leather products

and cement;

• ForeignexchangereservesareprojectedtoincreaseandtheBirristo

depreciate by 5 % against the dollar each year;

Table 1 Country facts

Area Total: 1.104.300 sq km

Land: 1 million sq. km

Terrain High plateau with central mountain range divided by the Rift Valley

Land use Arable land: 10 %

Permanent crops: 0,65 %

Population 85 M, of which 85 % rural population

Population growth rate 3,2 %

Agriculture Coffee, cereals, pulses, oilseed, cotton, sugarcane, potatoes, qat, cut flowers, hides,

cattle, sheep, goats.

Export commodities Coffee, qat, gold, leather products, live animals, oilseeds

Import commodities Food and live animals, petroleum products, chemicals, machinery, motor vehicles, cereals, textiles.

Industries Food processing, beverages, textiles, leather, chemicals, metals processing, cement

Natural resources Potash, salt, gold, copper, platinum

Export partners China 10.9 %, Germany 9.75 %, Saudi Arabia 7.4 %, US 7.2 %, Netherlands 6.4 %,

Switzerland 5.3 %, Sudan 4.3 %, Belgium 4 %

Import partners China 14.7 %, Saudi Arabia 8.4 %, India 7.6 %, US 4.3 %

GDP (2009 est.) $ 77.47 Billion

GDP per capital $ 900

GDP growth rate 8.7 %


Farmer Based Organizations and Cooperatives

Farmer cooperatives in Ethiopia do not provide extension services

directly to their members; rather, they are a major source of both

agricultural inputs and farm credits. They also provide grain market-

ing services and supply consumer good to members at prices that

compete with local traders (Davis et al., 2009). Some cooperatives are

involved in seed multiplication and distribution, training of members

in para-veterinary services and distribution of veterinary medicines.

Although the view among cooperative leaders is that these supposedly

farmer-driven organizations are not free to set their own agendas since

it is the government that sets the parameters within which cooperative

programs operate (Mogues et al. 2009), these cooperatives have played

a significant role in improving members’ welfare.

Agricultural Research.

The Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (EIAR) coordinates the

decentralized agricultural research activities at federal and regional

research centres, and through higher education institutions.

The Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (EIAR) is the country’s

main agricultural research agency. The semiautonomous EIAR has the

mandate to generate, develop, and adapt agricultural technologies

that focus on the overall development and needs of users.

EIAR is responsible for the coordination of decentralized agricultural

research activities at federal and regional research centres, and through

higher education institutions, including 7 regional and 15 federal

agricultural research institutes. It operates at the federal and regional

levels.

Literature:

Berhanu Gebremedhin, D. Hoekstra and Azage Tegegne, 2006:

Commercialization of Ethiopian agriculture: Extension service from

input supplier to knowledge broker and facilitator. ILRI/IPMS,

Working Paper 1.

Davis, K; B. Swanson, and D. Amudavi. 2009. Review and Recommen-

dations for Strengthening the Agricultural Extension System in Ethiopia.

International Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI).

See: http://www.eap.gov.et/?q=node/887

Mogues, Tewodaj; Cohen, Marc J.; Birner, Regina; Lemma, Mamusha;

Randriamamonjy, Josee; Tadesse, Fanaye; Paulos, Zelekawork. 2009.

Agricultural extension in Ethiopia through a gender and governance

lens. ESSP-II Discussion Paper 7. Addis Ababa, Ethiopia: International

Food Policy Research Institute (IFPRI) (Discussion paper)

http://www.ifpri.org/publication/agricultural-extension-ethiopia-

through-gender-and-governance-lens , http://www.ifpri.org/sites/

default/files/publications/esspdp07.pdf

Worldbank, 2011: Ethiopia economic update. Overcoming inflation,

raising competitiveness.

http://www-wds.worldbank.org/external/default/WDSContentServer/

WDSP/IB/2012/12/14/000333038_20121214023043/Rendered/PDF/NonAscii-

FileName0.pdf

Programmatic Components of the Ethiopian Extension System:

The four major components of the Ethiopian extension system put in

place by the government as part of a five year plan (2005-2006) for

accelerated and sustained development to end poverty include the

following:

•ParticipatoryDemonstrationandTrainingExtensionSystem(PADETES).

The system

was introduced by the government in 1995 to provide a small amount

of inputs through packages provided directly to farm households.

Some 35 to 40 % of farm households are reached and served through

the system with a low number of visits by public Das.

•FarmerTrainingCenters(FTCs).Roughly8,500FTCshavebeenbuiltat

the kebele

level. These centres are staffed with Development Agents (DAs) and are

responsible for providing extension activities in rural areas.

•AgriculturalTechnicalandVocationalEducation.In2000,thegovern-

ment invested in

agricultural and technical vocational education and training (ATVET)

centres to train DAs charged with carrying out agricultural extension

activities with farm households. By the close of 2008, the program had

trained over 63,000 DAs at the diploma level.

•InstitutionalCoordination.Therapidexpansionoftheextension

system has brought with it an administrative model to support an

extensive set of responsibilities, adapting to 32 agro-ecological zones

and to support a DA corps of over 60,000.

Extension services in Ethiopia until about 2002 were focused on

increasing production and productivity in view of achieving food

security. However, it had become apparent around 1996 that without

integrating farmers into the market, sustained growth in the agricul-

ture sector would not be realized. Perhaps as a result, the government

policy on agricultural development has recently started to emphasize

the transformation of subsistence agriculture into market orientation

as a basis for long-term development of the agricultural sector. Such

policy emphasis on market orientation has led to the recent establish-

ment of a State Ministry of Agricultural Marketing within the Ministry of

Agriculture and Rural Development (MoARD). Within this State Ministry,

specific emphasis is given to the role of co-operatives for the supply of

credit and input/output marketing services. The extension service will

have to make proper linkages with the co-operatives (ILRI/IPMS, 2006).

Woreda Level

The woreda (district level) Offices of Agriculture and Rural Development

(OOARDs) are the main frontline administrative structures implementing

agricultural extension.

The OOARDs are composed of five main sectors: agricultural

development, natural resources, environmental protection and land

administration, water supply and rural roads, and input supply and

cooperative promotion. The largest sector, agricultural development,

is responsible for extension services and is usually divided into crop

production, livestock production, natural resource management,

and extension teams (Gebremedhin, Hoekstra, and Tegegne 2006).

The OOARD represents a more operational level in terms of reach-

ing smallholder farmers and pastoralists. They do so using a cadre

of experts or subject matter specialists (SMSs, who are also found at

the regional level). There are more than 700 urban and rural woredas

(districts) in Ethiopia. There are, on average, about 30 or so agricultural

officers in nine divisions or units within each woreda agriculture office,

including (on average) about 10 or more SMSs who are expected to

provide technical support and training to the DA staff at the kebele

level. Most of these SMSs are assigned across the same technical areas

as the DA staff, that is, crops, livestock, and NRM. In the past, most of

the staff assigned to these SMS positions had begun their extension

careers at least 5 to 10 years earlier.

Kebele Level

Currently, there are about 8,489 farmer training centers, FTCs,

established at the kebele level, with roughly 2,500 of these FTCs

reported to be fully functional at the present time (Ethiopia, MOARD

2009a). Established FTCs are those that have a building and DAs in

place. However, they are not functional until they have started one

component of training—either demonstration or training. The training

may be modular training or may be short-term, based on demand.

The target is to have one FTC per kebele.

In 2009 there were about 45,000 DAs currently on duty at the kebele

level, of whom about 12 to 22 % are women, depending on the region

(Ethiopia, MOARD 2009a). The number of frontline extension person-

nel is expected to increase to roughly 60,000 when all FTCs have been

established and are fully functional. About 62,764 DAs have graduated

from the ATVETs as of 2008, with 12 % of them being female (Ethiopia,

MOARD 2009b). This overall total for DAs trained compared to DAs

currently serving (45,000) indicates that some ATVET graduates have

left the extension system since graduating from the ATVET system.

Given that there are approximately 21.8 million adults (ages 15–65)

who are active in agriculture, it is estimated that when the extension

system reaches its goal of 60,000 DAs placed in the field, there will

be roughly 1 DA for every 476 farmers. This would then be one of the

strongest extension agent–farmer ratios found in the world today.


This production system is characterized as extensive scavenging

management, absence of immunization programs, high risk of

exposure of birds to disease and predators, and reproduction entirely

based on uncontrolled natural mating and hatching of eggs using

broody hens.

Farmers rate the adaptive traits of indigenous chickens, in

particular the superior merits of indigenous chickens to high yielding

exotic breeds, as most important. Reproduction traits, such as broody

behaviour and high level of hatchability, were considered very impor-

tant. The village production system is based on low input-output levels

and is part of a balanced farming system that is economically efficient

because although outputs may be low, inputs are even lower.

Most important risks are high chick mortality, unsuccessful brooding,

and disease pressure due to poor immunization.

Figure 2 : Hay-box insulated brooder for first rearing of day old chicks.

2.2 Poultry production in Ethiopia.

The most recent statistics on the number of poultry in the country come

from the Central Statistical Agency (FDRE/CSA, 2012).

Most indigenous chickens are kept in the highlands. Chicken rearing

is not common in the lowlands of Ethiopia i.e. the Somali, Gambella,

Afar and Benishangul-Gumze Regional States, which collectively own

only 3.24% of the total national chicken population.

The figures in the above table are mainly to be seen as indicative,

given the daunting tasks of registering all poultry in a country as vast

as Ethiopia. Furthermore, there is no indication of how commercially

kept broilers are included, they cannot be distinguished from the

classification types used by the Central Statistical Agency.

In 2005, a total of 736.000 doc’s were imported into the country.

2.3 Poultry production systems.

FAO classifies poultry production systems into four different

categories (FAO, 2008):

Sector 1: Industrial integrated system with high level of biosecurity

and birds/products marketed commercially (e.g. farms that are part of

an integrated broiler production enterprise with clearly defined and

implemented standard operating procedures for biosecurity).

Sector 2: Commercial poultry production system with moderate to high

biosecurity and birds/products usually marketed commercially (e.g.

farms with birds kept indoors continuously; strictly preventing contact

with other poultry or wildlife).

Sector 3: Commercial poultry production system with low to minimal

biosecurity and birds/products entering live bird markets (e.g. a caged

layer farm with birds in open sheds; a farm with poultry spending time

outside the shed; a farm producing chickens and waterfowl).

Sector 4: Village or backyard production with minimal biosecurity

and birds/products consumed locally. This sector is by far the largest

production system in Ethiopia.

As in many other Africa countries, rural/village level or backyard

production in Ethiopia contributes significantly (approx. 96 %

according to the latest statistics) to the national egg and poultry meat

consumption. However, very little research and development work has

been carried out on indigenous chickens, despite its important contri-

bution to protein supply.

Village level production aims have been described, in order of priority

(Mullu, 2011):

• eggsusedforhomeconsumption

• farmgatesaleofeggsforadditionalincome

• meatconsumption.

situated in the Northern, North-eastern and central part of the country.

It is featured by a mixed farming system where crop cultivation and

livestock production are undertaken side-by-side complementing each

other. The number of young animals sold from the highlands which are

suitable for breeding or for further fattening is limited. The majority

of the animals sold are old draught animals and barren cows.

The highlands are a major source of sheep for slaughter in the cities.

The livestock population consists primarily of indigenous types that

have not adequately been characterized and documented. They are

mostly zebu. Main cattle breeds/populations identified and character-

ized include: Boran, Fogera, Horro, Sheko and the Afar. The Fogera and

Horro, well known for their milk production, are reared around Lake

Tana and Eastern Wellega regions, respectively. The Boran, a renowned

beef breed/population, is found in the southern and eastern parts of

the country, while the Sheko breeds/populations, which are considered

to have tolerance to high tsetse challenge, are found in the southwest.

European breeds, especially Friesian and Jersey, have been imported for

many years and crossed with the indigenous cattle breeds. (NABC, 2010).

2 Poultry production in Ethiopia. Authors: Adriaan Vernooij, Alberto Giani,

Ernst Beitler, Hilde Duns, Jessica Cornelissen.

2.1 Livestock production in Ethiopia.

The livestock population of Ethiopia is the largest in Africa and

consists of 52 million cattle, 24 million sheep, 22 million goats,

6 million donkeys, 2 million horses, 0.4 million mules, 1 million camels

and 45 million chickens (FDRE/CSA, 2012) The livestock sector contrib-

utes a considerable portion to Ethiopia’s economy, and is central to

the economic development of the country. Livestock products and

by-products in the form of meat, milk, honey, eggs, cheese, and butter

supply the needed animal protein that contribute to the improvement

of the nutritional status of the people. Livestock also plays an impor-

tant role in providing export commodities, such as live animals, hides,

and skins to earn foreign exchanges for the country.

Livestock is primarily kept on small-holdings in the highland

crop- livestock mixed farming system where it provides draught

power for crop production, manure for soil fertility and fuel, and

serves as a source of family diet and source of cash income (from the

sale of livestock and livestock products) particularly when markets for

crops are not favourable. This part covers around 40 % of the total land

surface and is located 1500 m above sea level (a.s.l.). The highlands are

Table 3 Estimated number of poultry by type and breed

Type of poultry All Indigenous Hybrid Exotic

Number(1000) % Number(1000) % Number(1000) % Number(1000) %

All poultry 44.893 100 43.304 96.46 256 0.57 1.332 2.97

Cocks 4.381 9.76 4.206 9.37 29 0.06 145 0.32

Cockerels 2.17 4.84 2.097 4.67 14 0.03 59 0.13

Pullets 4.125 9.19 3.97 8.84 27 0.06 127 0.28

Non-laying hens 1.393 3.1 1.340 2.99 8 0.02 45 0.1

Chicks 18.000 40.11 17.530 39.05 55 0.12 422 0.94

Laying hens 14.814 33 14.158 31.54 123 0.27 532 1.19


Commercially produced feed is usually adequately available. However

virtually no quality testing is done, hence the quality of feed does vary

and levels of energy, protein etc. cannot be taken for granted.

Furthermore, in order to reduce costs, many farmers “dilute” the

purchased feed with their own raw materials, such as maize, nough

cake, bone meal and do not add sufficient amount of extra pre-mixes.

Most of the housing constructions (basic structure) are usually fairly

well developed. Often built with stone walls, but also houses with

mud (rammed-earth) walls do suffice and can last up to 10 years.

Ventilation is often an issue though, as many houses do not have

appropriate facilities to stimulate a good airflow. Moreover, houses

with enough air inlet capacity often have poor covers over the air inlet

area which can result in strong temperature drops at night. Floor

quality is usually rather poor: many holes in the concrete floor,

preventing a proper cleaning and disinfection of the floors.

Many small scale (peri) urban farmers usually keep their birds in cages.

Doc’s are usually received in clean houses with proper bedding

(teff straw) and locally made brooders: iron sheet covers on a wooden

frame with two 200 W bulbs. Timely heating up the house before

receiving docs does not always happen and adjusting the height

during the beginning of the growing period is not always done timely.

Figure 4: Small scale cages.

2.5 Observations during farm visits July 2012.

It is clear that the “average” commercial farm in Ethiopia does not

exist. There is a variety of farms in terms of sizes, from 50 to 100.000

birds per farm. The vast majority of commercial poultry keepers can be

classified as small scale (<1000 birds), there are 10 to 20 medium scale

farms (1000 – 10.000 birds) and three farm with more than 20.000

birds.

During the farm visits, management levels and performance were

assessed by visual observation, discussions with staff and/or owner

and if available, by farm records. Visit reports were made,

summarizing:

• generalinformation(Farmname,Location,Nameandcontactdetails

of owner, Name and contact details of manager, Economic activities,

Farm typology)

• socio-economicandlivelihoodinformation(Ageandfamilysize

of owner/manager, Number of people working on the farm,

Ownership and benefit sharing, Livelihood strategies, Key uses of

livestock (food, income, social), Percentage of income from poultry

farming?, Coping strategies and indicators for hard times,

Knowledge level of manager / workers / owner)

•farmproductionsystem(Numberofanimals,Breedofanimals,

Housing / facilities, Hygiene, Feed, Water, Temperature/climate,

Performance, Mortality and morbidity figures, official records?,

Vaccination management, Disease management, Extensionist and

vet services,

Other / general management issues, Input: animals, Input: feed,

Input: vaccination and medication, Input: other, Type of products

sold, Customers, Sales numbers -seasonality, numbers, prices-)

•otheronoroff-farmactivities(Numberofanimals,Breedofanimals)

For definition of farm sizes the classification of

the FAO is followed;

< 50 birds

50-1000 small scale

10000-10.000 medium scale

>10.000 large scale.

It appears that there are few farmers who entirely specialise and

depend on poultry production. For small to medium scale farmers,

the income from poultry product sales is insufficient to make a living.

This problem is aggravated by the insufficiently and highly irregular

availability of doc’s. As docs must be ordered long time in advance

and the date of delivery is not known, it is hardly possible for a family

business just to rely on poultry production only.

Large scale poultry farms are mainly started by investors, who equally

do not rely on poultry as their sole source of income. Sometimes sector

related activities are carried out, such as feed milling, slaughtering

birds from other producers, brokering birds, but in many cases money

is also invested in completely different types of activities (e.g. car spare

parts, supermarkets, transport etc.).

2.4 Developments in commercial poultry keeping.

Whilst local village chicken are kept all over the rural highlands,

most commercial producers are concentrated in the area covering Addis

Ababa, Debre Zeit, Mojo and Adama. Commercial poultry farms are also

coming up in other growing urban areas (Mekelle, Dire Dawa, Gondar,

Awassa, Bahir Dar). Currently 17 % of the population live in cities and

the expected urbanisation growth rate stands at 3.8 % (CIA, 2012). This

means that urbanisation rates in Ethiopia are relatively low as com-

pared to other African countries. Market growth will therefore be small

initially, but is expected to still expand considerably throughout the

coming decades

In the concentration area Addis – Debre Zeit - Adama, it appears a

certain stratification has taken place in production. Broiler production

is concentrated in Adama, Mojo and Debre Zeit, pullet rearing is heavily

concentrated in Debre Zeit, whilst egg production is dominant in Addis

Ababa. There is a large peri-urban poultry production in and around

Addis, whereby even two-storey buildings have been put up.

Figure 3: Intensive (peri) urban poultry keeping: 900 layers in cages, double storey

building for layers on ground floor system.

The commercial sector in Ethiopia is divided over the three other

sectors of the FAO classification.

There is a growing, though not exactly known, number of small-scale

commercial (50 to 1000 animals) poultry keepers in the country.

This system of production is rapidly growing in the urban and

peri-urban areas. Using hybrid stock and relatively modern manage-

ment practices, these are an important source of income for many

families. They usually sell their eggs either directly or through

middlemen to kiosks, hotels and supermarkets. Chicken are kept

indoors permanently and contact with other poultry or wildlife is

prevented. Biosecurity risks are moderate, depending on the strictness

of hygiene measures applied. Farms are usually run as family business-

es, but highly dependent on irregular market supplies for their input

(one-day old chicks, feed and medicines).

The total number of small scale commercial farms and their

contribution to the national production is not known, but they do

provide the largest share of eggs and poultry meat to the growing

towns in Ethiopia (FAO 2008).

So far, there are only there are only approx. 15 medium to large scale

poultry farms that can be classified as sector 2 poultry farms, as they

process and distribute their own broilers or eggs: Elfora, Alema,

Maranata, Almaz, Abebaw in Mojo, Mekelle Farms, Genesis, Fanta

amongst others.

Recently (2012) a large scale high-tech broiler operation was started in

Mojo, concentrating only on export to Dubai. Also in Mojo, a plot of 700

ha has been allocated to Israeli investors for setting up poultry produc-

tion and growing crops for feed supply.

The production systems are linked in various ways. Efforts to improve

productivity of village level poultry have always been done through the

dissemination of hybrid stock. Initially these came from the govern-

ment multiplication centres, which are currently operating at a limited

scale and several are in the process of privatisation. The supply of day

old chicks has now to a great extent been taken over by those large

scale producers that also own hatcheries. The small scale commercial

farmers also depend on the larger companies for their inputs of day

old chicks. Frozen commercial broilers can be found in supermarkets

next to frozen indigenous chickens, which are still highly valued by the

urban population.Production systems in Ethiopia have been exten-

sively described in a number of recent publications (FAO 2008, Nigussie

Mullu, 2011, Nigussie Dana 2007, Wilson 2010, Demeke 2011)

Biosecurity risks: HPAI.

After the outbreaks of HPAI (Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza)

worldwide but in Egypt in particular in 2004-2006, contingency

planning was also undertaken in Ethiopia. Various studies (Bush 2006,

Demeke 2011, Pagani et al 2008) have been carried out to predict likely

socio-economic impacts on farmers. Scenario studies and field inter-

views indicated that possible losses on the mainly opportunistic way

of poultry keeping at village level would not lead to food insecurity,

but women as the primary owners of village chickens would be most

affected through reduced incomes.

So far, HPAI has not become a problem in Ethiopia yet.


Cost price broilers.

Cost price calculation for a 6000 broiler unit. Each round takes 10

weeks (approx. 7- 8 weeks fattening period + 2 to 2.5 weeks cleaning,

repairs, preparation)

Table 5 Costprice broilers

Purchase doc 22

Feed, 5 to 6 kg á 9 birr 50

Health (vaccinations, medica-

tion)

2

Various costs: electricity, water,

litter

3

Housing, equipment2 5

Labour costs (staffing as with

6000 layer unit, but extra peak

work for loading and clean-

ing make total daily wages 220

Birr )

3

Total 85

Cost price per kg (1.7 kg

slaughtered weight on average)

without labour costs

50 Birr per kg slaughtered

weight.

2.6 Cost price calculations.

Cost price calculations are based on current prices for building material,

equipment etc. Labour costs are worked out from existing examples of

6000 birds units.

Eggs.

Cost price calculation for a unit of 6000 laying hens, ground floor

system.

Birds are bought as 12 week old pullets, are kept for a 60 week laying

period. Average production 330 eggs.

Table 4 Cost price of eggs

Purchase price pullet 90 Birr

Feeding during rearing period

12-22 weeks, 6 kg á 9 Birr

54

Layers meal, for 60 weeks (60 x

7 days x 0,12 kg x 8 birr)

403

Health (some medication, dis-

infection measures)

5

Various: water, electricity.

Litter costs approx. 25 birr per

bale (15 kg). Amount needed:

1 bale per 250 birds = 0,1 Birr

per bird

5

Housing, equipment

Housing: 100.000 Birr : 3000 =

33 Birr per bird, depreciation

over a 10 year period = 3 Birr

per bird

Maintenance (2 Birr)

Equipment (1 Birr) 6

Labour 0.5

Total costs 563.5

Returns: selling price old hen 50

Total 513.5

Cost price per egg 513.5 : 330 =1.55 Birr

Vaccination is in virtually all cases done according to schedule. Some

of the larger farms purchase their own vaccines from abroad, either

directly or through local distributors. Locally made vaccines are only

available from the National Vaccine Institute in Debre Zeit. Though no

assessment could be made of the appropriateness neither of storage

facilities, nor of the knowledge of proper vaccinate techniques, no ma-

jor outbreaks of preventable diseases seem to occur on the commercial

poultry farms in Ethiopia. There is however a permanent threat of new

outbreaks of diseases from local birds in the surrounding. Outbreaks of

NCD regularly occur, neither is the country free from other diseases such

as Gumboro.

The rearing management of layer pullets is usually up to standards,

in most rearing farms that were visited.

Broiler keeping however does not go without difficulties. The qual-

ity and health of broiler doc’s is usually fairly good. However, due to

a variety of reasons, after one or two weeks various problems start

occurring on most of the farms: they appear to catch various diseases

strongly affecting uniformity and growth rates. Well-kept broiler farms

in Ethiopia are able to reach a live weight of over 2 kg in 45 days. In

most cases, the fattening period takes one to two weeks longer. Most

commonly occurring health problems are coccidioses and pulmonary

problems. Too many non performing sick birds are kept for too long in

the sick bay, leading to a waste of feed but they are also a continu-

ous source of infection for the healthy ones. Reasons for the disease

pressured are various: temperature control, ventilation, flooring quality

(often too wet in the end), feed quality, poor water quality.

Furthermore available drugs in the country are of a doubtful quality.

Manure is sold mainly to dairy farmers, either per 100 kg per bag or

pickup load (latter costing 400 Birr per load).

Biosecurity measures in general are either hardly existing or poorly

kept. Most farms do have some form of footbath, of which the

effectiveness is doubtful to the most, given the dirty nature of most of

the baths. No farm provides visitors with separate footwear.

Figure 5: broiler rearing.

2 Housing costs were calculated based on the following prices for building materials:

• 1truckloadofsand,16m3=2000Birr

• 1ironsheet=180Birr

• 1bagofcement=250–300Birr-1woodenpole=35Birr

• 1roleofwiremesh(250x500)=400Birr

• 1cementblock(40x20x20cm)=6,5Birr

• Labourcoststoconstructabasichousefor3000birdsisestimatedat5000Birr

Using these prices, a 3000 birds’ house with ground floor system will cost approx.

100.000 Birr.

3 A 6000 layer unit efficiently run needs 4 day staff as poultry attendants (wages 25 Birr

daily), 2 watchmen (20 Birr daily) and a manager (50 Birr daily). Total daily labour costs

= 190 Birr x 490 days = 93.100 Birr: 6000 birds = 155 Birr per bird: 330 = 0.5 Birr per egg.

4 220 Birr daily wages x 70 days = 15.400 Birr : 3000 = 5,1 Birr per bird : 1.7kg slaughtered

weight = 3.0 Birr per kg slaughtered weight.


Literature

CIA, 2012: World Fact Book.

FAO, 2008: Poultry sector country review.

NABC, 2010: Fact Sheet: Livestock Ethiopia. Livestock in Ethiopia and

opportunity analyses for Dutch investment

Nigussie Dana, 2011, Breeding programs for indigenous chicken in

Ethiopia. Analysis of diversity in production systems and chicken

populations. PhD Thesis, Wageningen University.

Pagani, P., Wossene, A., 2008: Review of the new features of

the Ethiopian poultry sector Biosecurity implications.

FAO Consultative Mission.

Solomon Demeke, 2005. Hay box chick brooding technology.

Collections, of the Symposium held on Nov. 10 World Science Day 2004

(UNESCO/ESTC). The Ethiopian Science and Technology Commission.

Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.

Solomon Demeke, 2011: HPAI Prevention and control strategies in

Eastern Africa. The Structure, marketing and importance of the

commercial and village poultry industry.

Vernooij, Adriaan, 2011: Brief introduction to the poultry sector of

Ethiopia. Internal report Wageningen UR.

Wilson 2010, Poultry production and performance in the Federal

Democratic Republic of Ethiopia. World's Poultry Science Journal, Vol.

66, September 2010

2.7 Checklist farm visits.

The following checklist was used during farm visits.

Checklist poultry farm visits. (Layers)

Owner

Age, family size and composition,

Farm

location, infrastructures available (electricity, water, roads),

availability of extensionists/vet services, access to markets

Animals

• number

• source:whichhatchery

• availability

• prices

Housing

• typeofhousing:walls(types),ventilation,layingnests,

watering points, cleanliness, storage space available,

roofing type, electricity available,

Feed

• sourcesoffeed

• whatratiosbeingused

Health

• vaccinations

• diseasemonitoring

• treatmentscarriedout

Production

• recordsbeingkept?

• laying%vsageofhens

Quality of daily management

• cleanliness

• adequatewateravailable

• anydryhens?

• startingoffyounghens:facilities,temperaturecontrol,

broodersavailable?

• mortalityrates

• arerecordskept:laying%available?

Socio economics

• laborprovision

• divisionoflaboronthefarm

• whoownsthechicken

Sales

• towhom,buyers,howmanyatatime

• prices,seasonalvariation

• marketconstraints?

These cost prices are based on fairly well managed units. Given current

price and return levels, both layer and broiler keeping are profitable

businesses. However, performance levels are often much lower than

these assumptions.

Farm gate prices for eggs vary from 1.6 Birr in remote areas to 2.2 Birr

for large scale farms near Addis. Broiler prices vary highly throughout

the seasons: form 50 to 60 Birr in fasting seasons up to 120 Birr during

religious feasts.

Feed determines almost 80 % (layers) or 60 % (broilers) of the cost

price. Feed prices are based on best quality feeds available, cheaper

(but poorer) feeds can be obtained to cut costs. But production will

also be affected negatively.

Laying % achieved in practice is often poorer than possible under

proper management circumstances. One example of a 900 layer unit

visited had 60 week old birds with a production of 700 eggs daily.

Ideally, the production of such young hens should be 100 eggs per day

higher than this. For this farm it means a loss of daily income of 100

eggs = approx. 200 Birr. The 100 non-laying birds will still consume 12

kg of feed daily á 8 Birr = 96 Birr, for which no return is obtained.

Figure 6: Most broilers are slaughtered on farm,

and stored in containers turned into deep freezers.


Figure 7: Value Chain map for exotic broilers (top, blue boxes) and table eggs (middle,

green boxes) in Ethiopia, the institutional and policy environment is displayed at the

bottom of the image (orange boxes)

3.2 Poultry value chain structure

The poultry VC is displayed in figure 1. The blue boxes (top) refer

to the VC of broilers, the green boxes (middle) to that of layers,

the orange boxes (bottom) indicate the institutional and policy

environment. Below the figure the structure of the value chain will be

explained, following the functions, input and institutional and policy

environment.

The VCs show a low level of specialisation, it has a limited number of

actors per function and a high level of integration of functions at the

larger scale production (covering several functions and input flow in

the VC: e.g. feed, multiplication, hatching, production and retailing

within one business).

Both VCs use the following classification7 :

• Smallscalecommercialfarms:capacityof50to1,000birds

• Mediumscalecommercialfarms:capacityof1,000to10,000birds

• Largescalecommercialfarms:capacityofover10,000birds

In general, the number of actors on the different scales follows a

pyramid structure, with only a few large scale farms, a bit more

(e few tens) medium scale farms and many (a few hundreds) small

scale farms.

3 Poultry Value Chain Analysis Authors: Jessica Cornelissen, Adriaan Vernooij, Alberto Giani

3.1 Introduction

In the 2G@There Poultry Ethiopia program a range of Dutch inves-

tors in the poultry sector came together as the Holland African Poultry

Partners. They wish to strengthen the country’s poultry value chain (VC)

by working on the improvement of local knowledge in the Ethiopian

poultry sector and the application thereof in practice. In doing so,

the partners are convinced that this will yield business opportunities

for their consortium in Ethiopia.

The program is started with an inventory phase, looking at the

production system in use, the poultry VC and the market opportunities

for broiler meat and table eggs of exotic5 origin. This inventory phase

serves as the basis for the strategy for the full program.

This report deals with part of this inventory phase, namely the study

on Ethiopia’s poultry VC. For the other topics we refer to parallel reports

prepared as part of the 2G@There Poultry Ethiopia program.

Objective

The objective of this research is:

To analyse the poultry value chain of broiler meat and table eggs of

exotic origin, describing the current state of supply and processing and

institutional barriers and opportunities for development of the sector.

The analysis specifically focuses on the two poultry concentration areas

in Ethiopia: 1) Addis/Debre Zeyt/Nazareth and 2) Tigray (Mekelle, Aksum).

3.1.2 Methodology

The VC analysis is based on an analytical framework for inclusive

agrifood market development developed by Wageningen UR.

This framework describes six activities of which the first two - mapping

and understanding the value chain; mapping and understanding the

institutional and policy environment – are performed in the current

analysis.

Data is obtained through a combination of the following6:

• Deskresearchofavailablereportsonthepoultryvaluechainin

Ethiopia

• Fieldvisitsofvaluechainactorsinthetwopoultryconcentration

areas: in total 52 stakeholders were visited during a two-weeks

mission

• Consultationwithstakeholdersinajointworkingsession

5 ‘Exotic’ meat and eggs are those products that are derived from imported or modern

poultry flocks of hybrid birds. Throughout this report we use the terms ‘exotic meat’

and ‘exotic eggs’ to indicate the products of these types of birds. The traditional and

prevailing type of birds kept in Ethiopia are so-called ‘local birds’, producing ‘local

meat’ and ‘local eggs’. Next to this, a variety of chicken branded ‘Kuroiler’ is introduced

in Ethiopia (coming from India) in modest quantities. The Kuroiler chicken is meant for

a resource-poor, foraging village environment and is kept for both its meat and eggs.

6 Separate reports are available on the field visits and the joint working session

7 This classification is based on a FAO report: FAO,2008. Poultry Sector Country Review:

an Analysis of the Poultry Sector in Ethiopia.


Crediting for small and medium scale enterprises falls under the

government policy to improve the country’s food security.

Crediting for large scale enterprises (projects of over 1 million birr)

on the other hand falls under the policy to increase influx of foreign

currency into the country.

Cooperatives and representative organisations

There are few farmers’ cooperatives and only a few per cent of farmers

are represented in a cooperative. Recently, the EPPA (Ethiopian Poultry

Producers Association) has been established, to represent the interest

of the Ethiopian poultry farmers. No clear objectives and work plans

have been decided upon yet, thus the operationalization and imple-

mentation lags behind.

Import procedures

The poultry sector is highly dependent on import, since there is no or

not enough in-land production of parentstock, DOCs, equipment,

vaccines and drugs for instance. Imports run through a limited number

of stakeholders, making others dependable on their operations. Import

procedures are lengthy and complex and the offices through which

import application need to go through do not ensure a smooth and

quick handling.

Rural empowerment

Ethiopia has a tiered government system consisting of a federal states,

zones, districts (woredas), and neighbourhoods (kebele). This makes it

possible to deliver policies, such as those on rural empowerment,

up to the woreda and kebele level. Each kebele has its own devel-

opment agents. These DAs are responsible for agricultural extension

services. They facilitate e.g. distribution of DOCs and animal feed,

sometimes DOC can be purchased by poor farmers at a reduced price

Land tenure

When a farmer wants to start a farm, he need to apply for land at the

district office. Land can be leased or rented for a long period (up to 99

years).

VAT registration

If a farmer wants to sell his products directly to consumers, he needs

a VAT registration. These are expensive and therefore hard to get for

most small and medium scale farmers. As a result they are depend-

ent on brokers (primary collectors) in order to get their product to the

market. These brokers charge a fee for their services, which presses on

the farmer’s profitability.

Views on and status of poultry production

It is believed by many that anybody could start a poultry farm and

keep chickens successfully. It is not seen as something that need skill,

knowledge and training. Many people start a poultry farm without any

knowledge or without a solid business plan and with the expectation

to make quick and easy money. The result is that many fail in their

efforts. Because of this, there is a high turnover of entrepreneurs in the

poultry business which adds to market and chain uncertainties.

Eating traditions and preferences

As said before, exotic broiler meat and table eggs constitute a tiny

portion of the market share of chicken meat and eggs in Ethiopia and

consumption of animal-derived products is low all-together, because

of the Orthodox Christian fasting regime and the weak buying power of

many Ethiopians.

In general it is safe to say that exotic broiler meat and table eggs only

constitute a tiny portion of the market share of chicken meat and eggs

in Ethiopia. Consumption of animal-derived products is low all-to-

gether, because of the fasting regime (more than 200 days a year) the

Orthodox Christian consumers follow and because many households

cannot afford to buy much animal products. If budget, tradition or

religion allow animal protein to be eaten, preferences are for local

eggs and for local chicken or other meat types than chicken.

Local eggs and local chicken are used in traditional dishes such as doro

wat. It is generally felt that modern eggs and chicken are not suitable

to prepare this dish. Exotic broiler meat and table eggs are mainly used

by bulk consumers that serve an international audience such as hotels

and restaurants. Exotic table eggs are preferred, also by Ethiopians,

over local eggs for use in pastry.

3.2.2 Value chain inputs

Feed

There are a few commercial feed producers that produce specialised

poultry feed in the country. Feed mills generally use locally produced

raw materials. However, premixes and concentrates are usually import-

ed since there is no or insufficient production of good quality premixes

and concentrates in the country.

Vaccines and drugs

For an analysis of the veterinary health system in Ethiopia, we refer

to a study performed in parallel with the 2G@There Poultry Ethiopia

program8.

Equipment

Poultry farm equipment is available through several farm equipment

distributors. All equipment is imported as there is no production in

Ethiopia. The distributors have close relationships with several

companies abroad (based in multiple countries, such as Belgium, Italy,

The Netherlands, India, China, etc.). Customers are farmers at all scales.

Small and medium scale farmers mostly buy drinkers and feeders,

while large scale farmers need more comprehensive solutions including

hatchery and climate systems.

3.3 Institutional and policy environment

Training services

For an analysis of training services and training needs, we refer tothe

training needs assessment report that is part of the inventory phase of

the 2G@There Poultry Ethiopia program (chapter 5 of this report).

In general, we can say that some trainings on technical aspects of

farming are given at many levels and that training specifically on

poultry farming is present as well. However, training on business

development is lacking and needed.

Loan and credit services

Loan and credits are available for farmers at each level, collateral/

capital of 30% of the total investment is needed. Interest rates are

between 8 and 12.5 % and are dependent on e.g. the location of the

client (urban or rural). Farmers need to have a business plan to apply

for a loan. At most crediting agencies farmers are assisted in develop-

ing their business plan. Some agencies discourage relatively poor

people with limited financial means of their own to start up a small

scale poultry farm because of prior negative experiences with this.

Recently, a few large-scale integrated farms that produce solely for the

export market (e.g. Abu Diab) have been started.

All large scale layer farmers rear pullets themselves, mostly from their

own or imported DOCs. However, some medium and most small scale

farmers either choose for pullet rearing or for layer keeping. In order to

provide layers for those who lack the ability or capacity to raise pullets

in a proper way themselves, some multiplication centres keep some of

their DOCs, raise them and sell them as layers.

Large and medium scale farms usually slaughter and process the birds

themselves. Level of processing is low though; most birds are sold

plucked, eviscerated and frozen and only some go into further

processing for special cuts like legs, thighs or breast. Small scale

farmers usually lack slaughtering facilities. They contact a broker who

buys their chickens and brings a slaughterman to the farm. The broker

then takes the carcasses to his own premises to dress and freeze them,

ready for the market.

Collecting, trading and retailing

The eggs of large scale integrated farms follow several routes to the

market. There is one wholesale (owned by ELFORA), which sell

(their own) eggs in bulk to super- and minimarkets and to bulk

consumers such as hoteliers, schools, universities, embassies,

bakeries or restaurants. Some large scale farms sell their eggs in

their own super- and minimarket or they sell to other super- and

minimarket or to market vendors directly. The final route to the market

is through primary collectors.

For small and medium scale farmers these primary collectors are the

main gateway to the market. Since these farmers generally lack a

VAT registration (which allows someone to engage into commercial

activities involving the production and distribution of goods and the

provision of services with ‘added value’), they need an intermediary.

Primary collectors visit the farms one by one to collect the eggs.

After collecting, they trade the bulked eggs to market vendors or

super- and minimarkets.

For consumers in search of exotic eggs, there are basically two options,

either the local market or super- and minimarkets. Local markets are

ubiquitous in many towns and cities. There, market vendors sell exotic

eggs next to the local ones. They usually sell live local chickens as well.

Super- and minimarkets are only found in bigger settlements. Some

super- and minimarkets are owned by large scale farms. If there is no

shortage of eggs such farm-owned super- and minimarkets sell only

eggs sourced from their own farms. But if there is a shortage, they will

also purchase from primary collectors.

Broilers are for the vast majority sold as deep-frozen whole chickens in

supermarkets and minimarkets (we did see one retailer that sells fresh

broilers and a few freezers stocked with some breasts, thighs and legs

next to the whole chickens). This is the only outlet for chicken meat

which is not still alive and kicking.

The ELFORA wholesale would be another place to shop for those that

need broiler meat in large quantities.

Consumption

For an analysis of consumption patterns and market opportunities of

exotic broiler meat and table eggs, we refer to the market analysis report

that is part of the inventory phase of the 2G@There Poultry Ethiopia

program. Some general notions on the VC structure can be given though.

3.2.1. Value chain functions

Breeding, multiplication and hatching

The input of DOCs shows a similar structure for both the VC of broilers

and that of eggs. Most DOCs that enter the two VCs, both layers and

broilers, are not bred in Ethiopia but obtained from multiplication

centres in other countries such as the Netherlands, South Africa,

Saudi Arabia or Egypt. The biggest importers of DOCs are the large and

medium scale farmers. The minimum amount of DOCs that are import-

ed at one time is 10,000 animals. Medium-scale farmers that operate

below that capacity join forces when purchasing DOCs.

Secondly, layer and broiler DOCs are produced in the country.

This is done by large scale commercial farms and multiplication centres.

An overview of hatching activity of these actors in the country is given

in the Appendix.

Several large scale farms have their own hatching (and sometimes also

multiplication) facilities to produce DOCs. They mainly operate for their

own production, but also supply medium and small scale farmers.

These farms have their own, imported parent stock. In some cases,

though not structurally, hatching eggs are imported.

For the flow of DOC from large farms to rural farmers, Development

Agents (DA) step up as an intermediary. This is part of government

policy on rural empowerment, with which government ensures

distribution of DOCs and other VC inputs throughout the country and

sometimes offering the animals at a reduced price.

There used to be about ten multiplication centres producing DOCS

throughout the country, but as a result of privatisation only a few are

currently operational. Multiplication centres have their own parent

stock, which is either imported from breeding farms abroad or sourced

from the Ethiopian Institute of Agricultural Research (EIAR). The source

of parent stock from the EIAR is very limited though and doesn’t reach

commercial levels, since the EIARs main activity is to develop new or

improved breeds of layers that are better adapted to the Ethiopian

situation. The multiplication centres supply DOCs to medium and small

scale farmers. Next to this, there is some activity in pullet rearing,

for supply of layers to small scale farmers.

Next to these major sources of DOC, a few medium and small scale

farmers have their own small incubators in which they hatch layer-

DOCs themselves. They purchase the hatching eggs from multiplication

centres and a few farmers are also rearing their own parent stock.

Production of broilers and eggs

For a full overview of the type of farms and their production systems,

we refer to the farm systems analysis report that is part of the inven-

tory phase of the 2G@There Poultry Ethiopia program.

A general notion on the production part of the VC is that the scale sizes

of farms differ a lot along the VC; there are farms that keep a few dozen

layer chickens and there are farms that keep a couple of ten thou-

sands. There are approximately 15 medium to large scale integrated

farms that keep poultry and that process and distribute their products

themselves, to name a few: ELFORA farms, Alema Farms, Maranatha

Farms, Almaz Farm, Abebaw Farm, Mekelle Farms and Genesis Farms.

The number of players in exotic broiler production is much lower

compared to exotic eggs production.

7 Claassen, I. 2012. Mission report, Poultry Veterinary Health strengthening Ethiopia


Hatcheries with unknown status

Name Capacity

Gethu Alema Farms Poultry

Farms

38,000

Bahir Dar 22,000

Adele 18,090

Bedele 18,090

Fanta 16,000

Beke Poultry Farm 8,400

All hatcheries have their own parentstock, which they import.

In general, the knowledge on hatching processes is low and manage-

ment standards at most of the hatcheries are poor. This leads to low

hatching percentages. E.g. one hatchery started off with 80 % initially

one year ago, but gradually the hatching percentage went down 25 %

early this year. With some provisional improvements the percentage

has gone up to approx. 50 % again, still far too low.

Hatching results are influenced both by parentstock management as

well as the management of the hatchery itself. Managing parentstock

is more difficult than managing layers or broilers. E.g. feeding broiler

parentstock is rather sensitive, as they need to be fed strictly accord-

ing to schedule to prevent them growing too fat. The parentstock farms

observed clearly lacked good management: animals were not always

uniform, cocks often too fat, dry hens are not culled and many birds

suffer from diseases and external parasites.

On most of the parentstock farms, there is no candling equipment

available to test fertility of the eggs. Furthermore, hatching of both

layer and broiler parentstock are often put together in the same batch,

which is far from ideal, as layer hatching eggs are more sensitive to

disturbances in the hatching process.

A structural problem with all the hatcheries in Ethiopia is the altitude

on which they are built. All are on higher altitudes, where the oxygen

concentrations are lower. This leads to higher mortalities between days

15 and 20 of the hatching process, when chicks gradually need more

oxygen.

The total output of the hatcheries currently is too low to meet the

demand for doc’s. This leads to long waitinglists for poultry keepers

and empty, unoccupied houses for periods sometimes up to 7 months

or longer. This makes poultry production a risky venture and as a result,

many people drop out of poultry keeping and turn to other

ways of income.

3.4 Overview of hatcheries in Ethiopia

Operational hatcheries

Name Capacity

Alema Farms 200,000

Sululta 56,800 + 19,200

Abebaw 28,080

Addis 22,000

ELFORA Unknown

Mekelle Farms Unknown

Awassa Unknown

University Alema Farms Unknown

University Debre Zeyt Unknown

Hatcheries being established or expanded

Name Targeted capacity

Samson 56,800

Golden Poultry Farm 10,500 + 56,800

Nagash 22,000

Elere Farms (Fanta Terefe) Unknown

Non-operational hatcheries

Name Capacity

Genesis 64,000

Adama 37,000

University Awassa 37,000

Three Lakes Poultry Farm 22,000

University Ambo 18,000

Kombolcha Very little production

University Jimma Unknown

The preference for local chicken and eggs over the modern variety

probably has its origin in the way chicken is prepared and eaten.

There is one national traditional dish containing chicken meat and

eggs, called doro wat. Outside doro wat, Ethiopians do not eat much

chicken meat. Doro wat requires cooking the chicken meat for a long

time. The traditional chicken, with its tougher meat-structure, is more

fit to this. The dish is considered special; it is eaten on special occa-

sions, it needs special attention in cooking and requires special (and

expensive) ingredients. As a result of this status, chicken is not seen as

something you can eat every day and which can be prepared simple,

quick and easy. In addition to this, the more western modes of prepar-

ing chicken are not common in Ethiopia and chicken is not considered

fast and cheap food as in many other countries. Since chicken can only

be bought (or at least, mostly) as a whole animal, a fairly big invest-

ment is needed for this. Other types of meat, such as cattle, can be

bought by the gram, making it possible for those with a smaller grocery

budget to eat meat.

Demographic trends

The country sees a population growth and urbanisation. This might

have an impact on the demand (types and quantities) for chicken

products. Looking at past trends and other countries, increasing

population, greater purchasing power and urbanization led to a rise in

demand for livestock products and in many countries this demand was

filled with pig and poultry products9.

Food purchasing habits

Ethiopian consumers prefer to buy their groceries on the local market.

They prefer to buy a live chicken and kill it themselves. Consumers

perform extensive quality control on the product (chicken) they are

about to buy, something which is more difficult in a modern super-

market on processed or dressed meat wrapped in foil.

Chain cooperation

There is little chain cooperation, there is not a chain approach and no

chain director. There are a few very large companies with a very high

influence on the sector and the market. They have the power to control

prices and sometimes they dump products at a very low price on the

market (an oligopoly)

9 FAO, 2006. Livestock’s Long Shadow: Environmental Issues

and Options.


International Livestock Research Institute (ILRI), Addis Ababa

According to ILRI staff there is a national research program on poultry.

ILRI collaborates with the Debra Zeit National Agricultural Research

Centre. Most of the research focuses on nutrional value of feed but at

Debra Zeit University animal health issues are addressed.

Results are published in scientific journals but there is no communica-

tion strategy to support implementation of usable results. The role of t

he private sector is very low and negligible in research.

It is acknowledged that there is a lack of qualified people for both

farm management and veterinarians. ILRI is setting up a small research

laboratory in collaboration with EIAR.

ILRI recommends that veterinary health training is set up as T0T

(training of trainers) program, and works closely with researchers and

existing education systems in veterinary schools. Also they recommend

that training is focused on “serious” companies, for which ILRI can

provide a list. Basic veterinary health skills should be trained to both

veterinarians and poultry managers.

ILRI also indicates comprehensive poultry disease control program

should be developed.

Pan African Laboratory for Vaccine Control (AU-PANVAC), Debre Zeit

PANVAC was originally founded in 1986 for the independent Quality

Control of Rinderpest vaccines. Nowadays the institute is responsible

for testing all vaccine batches that are produced, imported and used

on the African continent. It is unlikely that they are actually reaching

this goal since only 100 batches per year are tested. Other activities

include training, reagent and diagnostic kit development and harmo-

nization of testing protocols. OIE guidelines are leading. Testing focuses

on safety, sterility, potency and identity testing and is in principle a

repeat test of what the manufacturer is doing. However, PANVAC claims

that they also test vaccines from the field and from outlets.

PANVAC is being funded by the African Union and it can be seen

everywhere that funding is apparently not an issue. There are good

facilities for laboratory testing (Bacteriology, Virology, and Molecular

Biology), reagent development, and a one year old state-of- the-art

BSL3 laboratory. The animal facilities include breeding facilities for

rabbits, mice and guinea pigs. The premises are clean and well

organized. The scientific staff is of high quality.

PANVAC ambitions are high but they appear to be understaffed, with

only 15 people including management. As everywhere else, the focus

appears to be on cattle and small ruminants and not on poultry.

The staff was very open and willing to discuss future collaboration.

Ethiopian Institute for Agricultural Research (EIAR), Debre Zeit

EIAR is doing some research on poultry breeding and feed research.

A small diagnostic laboratory is being established in collaboration with

ILRI for research purposes. This laboratory is clearly in development

and has very limited possibilities. The focus appears to be mainly on

development of rural poultry management and as yet there appears to

be no collaboration with commercial farms.

4.3 Key players in poultry health.

National Veterinary Institute (NVI), Debre Zeit

The NVI produces vaccines to protect Ethiopian livestock against

infectious diseases. According to the information provided they

produce app. 120 million vaccine doses annually. The majority of these

vaccines are intended for cattle and small ruminants. Animal facili-

ties and the research laboratory were visited. The actual production

building was only seen from the outside but from the explanation it

can be concluded that many different types of vaccines are produced

in a single building. Bacterial and viral vaccine production is separated

within the building.

Development of vaccines is limited and there are no intentions to

develop poultry vaccines at this moment.

The vaccines are sold on site to the customers. There is no guaranteed

cold chain after the vaccines leave the NVI. Also there are no data

available on the quality of vaccines used in the field. Also NVI does not

investigate the effectiveness of the vaccination programmes.

Vaccination is usually carried out during outbreaks.

Poor vaccine quality and or poor vaccine application in the field

are serious concerns and they would go unnoticed in the absence

of preventive vaccination programs.

All vaccine batches are retested by AU-PANVAC.

A small laboratory for process development was built with EU funding

and GALVmed support over the past two years. Two suites for bacterial

and viral product and process development are present.

NVI and PANVAC will use the facility together in the future.

At the moment of visit the unit was not in operation.

Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), Addis Ababa

FAO representatives confirm the lack of poultry health knowledge in

Ethiopia. When HPAI H5N1 was diagnosed on the African continent

several parties invested in upgrading diagnostic capacity. A BSL 3 labo-

ratory was established at NAHDIC funded by FAO. According to FAO the

main problems in poultry are NCD and Gumboro. FAO has no ongoing

poultry projects in Ethiopia.

A general problem for the veterinary services is the absence of

budgets and decentralization. When there are budgets available

poultry receives a low priority. NCD incidence is reported in a passive

surveillance program.

Increasing awareness of biosecurity amongst farmers and

veterinarians should be a priority. According to FAO, Gumboro was

introduced 10 years ago by import of DOC from outside Ethiopia.

General extra training of veterinarians is needed.

FAO sees the potential of the poultry industry to grow in size.

Bringing down costs, strengthening biosecurity and vaccination pro-

grams are essential. In the current situation with over 95% of the birds

held as backyard poultry, the only potential market for commercial

poultry is seen in the larger cities (app. 20 million consumers). Growth

can only be realized if poultry health management is taken seriously.

• Thereare14regionallaboratoriesthatareresponsiblefordiagnosis

of veterinary disease. They are linked to the Agricultural bureaus.

The diagnostic possibilities of the laboratories are varying and

limited Training programs by NAHDIC exist as well as

annualmeetings of the managers of these laboratories.

• Diseasesurveillanceislargelybasedonpassivesurveillance.

There are some programs on monitoring for HPAI in wild birds.

• NVIproducesanumberofvaccinesforpoultry.Liveandinactivated

Newcastle disease, IBD, Fowl pox, and Fowl typhoid. Other important

vaccines are not available from local producers. Vaccination

programs are nonexistent but commercial producers do have

regular vaccination against the most important diseases.

There is no data available on the efficacy of vaccination in the field.

There is no organized cold chain management. Vaccination is used

as a control tool during outbreaks of disease.

• ResearchonpoultryinEthiopiaseemstofocusontheselection

of robust cross breeds and on feed composition. ILRI has some

research projects focussing on animal health issues in village

and backyard poultry

• AU-PANVACplaysanimportantroleinvaccinetesting.Thisinstitute

has excellent facilities for vaccine analysis and the development

of reagents. It has the potential to play an important role for

improving vaccine quality on the African continent. However the

institute is lacking a good mandate and appears to be understaffed.

It tests approximately 100 vaccine batches per year, whereas many

more are produced, imported and used on the African continent.

The following recommendations can be made on the basis of the

finding;

• Developmentofatrainingprogramforinterestedgovernment

and industry veterinarians on poultry health issues.

This program could be developed in cooperation with local partners

such as industry or universities.

• Improveandincreasediagnosticcapacitiestodiagnosepoultry

infectious diseases. The responsible institute NAHDIC is the reference

institute and therefore the most logical target for this activity.

However, it is important that commercial farms are involved as well

• Startmonitoringprogramsforinfectiousdiseases,especiallyin

commercial farms and surrounding areas

• Trainingonvaccinationprotocolsandvaccineadministration

• Trainingoffarmers/ownersonpoultryhealthissuesand

infectious diseases. The default reaction of farmers is to use

antibiotics if they suspect a disease problem. A proper diagnosis

of the problem is not made in most cases.

The focus of this mission has been very much on the technical

capability of the Ethiopian veterinary infrastructure to diagnose

and control poultry infectious diseases that are relevant for

commercial poultry development. Universities have not been visited

so the information on research and the quality of education stems

from secondary sources. It is therefore recommended that

future visits of experts include visits to universities and regional

diagnostic laboratories to complete this picture.

In summary, poultry health management in Ethiopia can only be

described as weak at all levels. There exist ample opportunities

for improvement and the recommendations made in this report can

serve as a basis to set priorities.

4 Poultry Veterinary Health strengthening in Ethiopia Author: Ivo Claassen, with assistance from Hilde Duns.

4.1 Introduction

This chapter reflects the findings of a survey of the author conducted

in Ethiopia from 8-13 July, 2012.

4.2 Summary of main findings.

In parallel with the development of the Ethiopian poultry industry

the veterinary health systems that are necessary to support poultry

health should be developed. Currently the commercial poultry sector in

Ethiopia is very small, and of minor economic importance, especially

in relation to the cattle and small ruminant sector. As a consequence,

there is limited knowledge on poultry management, disease diagnosis

and disease control systems.

From discussions with Ethiopian researchers, veterinarians and

representatives of international organizations, in combination with

own observations the following can be concluded:

• Thetrainingofgraduatesfromtheveterinaryschoolsisvery

generalist. Consulted veterinarians and the Ethiopian Veterinary

Organization (EVA) describe the level of graduates as poor, but do

not put forward any solutions.

• Inthepast10yearsthenumberofvetschoolshasincreased

from 1 to 9. This has had an enormous impact on the quality

of education, in a negative way, and subsequently on the level

of knowledge of graduates. Also the number of graduates has

increased enormously. This has led to an oversupply of

veterinarians and a devaluation of the profession. Many graduates

find jobs elsewhere.

• Therearenospecializedpoultryveterinarians.Postgraduate

training to fill this gap is not foreseen in the near future.

It is generally acknowledged that expertise on poultry health issues

among veterinarians is limited.

• Themostimportantveterinarydiagnosticinstitute,NAHDIC,isunable

to diagnose important poultry diseases like Marek, Coryza and

others, due to a lack of reagents and technical experience with these

diseases. The institute relies heavily on the use of commercial assays

which are hard to get, and have not been shown to be suitable for

the Ethiopian situation. Research on HPAI, a disease that has not

occurred in Ethiopia is consuming resources.


5 Final report and Drafting 3 year development plan for veterinary

service

A final report will be drafted this report will include proposal for a 3

year development plan to strengthen the veterinary infrastructure of

Ethiopia as well as the Ethiopian poultry sector.

Local birds are however hardly reached at all. This poses a threat to

outbreaks of diseases putting commercial producers at risk and

reducing potential food and income for local families. The NVI intends

to start an awareness and training programme to reach more local

village level poultry in 2012. Discussions have started on how the Dutch

poultry initiative can collaborate in carrying out these awareness

campaigns and trainings on vaccinations.

Improved monitoring will also lead to potentially lower use of

antibiotics in poultry production in Ethiopia.

Improving disease monitoring.

Effective disease monitoring is necessary to register potential outbreaks

already in its early stages. This requires professional veterinary services

and laboratories, but more adequately trained staff able to recognise

diseases at an early stage, both on farms, on markets and in slaughter-

houses. Diagnostic capabilities, knowledge of epidemiology, extension

to poultry farmers are all equally important components of a strategy

to improve disease monitoring.

The planned activities will be fully planned with and imbedded in

existing veterinary infrastructure in Ethiopia. No new organisations of

facilities will be set up by this programme.

Planned activities.

The following activities will be implemented

1 Inventory mission/ Gap analysis.

Assessments will be made of available knowledge and infrastructure

at the Ministry of Agriculture, veterinary services, diagnostic labora-

tory, vaccine production/distribution/imports, veterinary research,

general veterinary training, registration/distribution veterinary drugs,

cold chain facilities, available epidemiological knowledge, present

and targeted surveillance, consultation with donors and other support

programme targeting veterinary health in Ethiopia.

2 Veterinary services including training epidemiology, risk assessment

and prioritization

Two training missions will be organised to train the veterinary services

in epidemiological methods and in a work shop set-up to determine a

risk assessment of most important diseases. This will lead to a possible

strategy to prioritise the combat of most important diseases

3 Laboratory training including Quality management, test protocols and

field diagnostics.

Trainings will be organized to strengthen veterinary services and veteri-

nary laboratories. Field staff will be trained to recognise and diagnose

diseases, good vaccination practices, extension to poultry keepers.

Laboratory training will a.o. focus on improving laboratory quality

systems with on-site trainings.

Working out proposals for a system of local disease management.

4 vaccination and farm management

A mission will be dedicated to the proper use of vaccines and the

development of vaccination schedules.

4.4 Improvement of poultry health delivery services in Ethiopia.

Introduction.

Poultry production is rapidly growing in Ethiopia due the strong rise

in demand. Demand concerns both rural chickens at village level, but

also in growing urban centres. These are mainly supplied by small scale

producers operating near population concentrations in the urban cen-

tres. Both eggs and poultry meat are in high demand and the current

level of production is insufficient to meet the demand.

A future rise in production will inevitably lead to higher densities of

chickens on individual farms but also in (sub)urban areas. This growth

in number poses certain risks of spreading poultry diseases.

Furthermore, more inexperienced people will get involved in the poul-

try sector, who are not adequately trained in poultry management, and

certainly not in preventing, diagnosing en treating diseases. Therefore,

there is a clear need to improve on poultry health delivery services.

Present situation.

Currently, there are various elements of an infrastructure provid-

ing poultry health delivery services in place in Ethiopia. NVI provides

a large number of vaccines for all animal species, including poultry.

PANVAC is resposible for quality control testing of all vaccines that are

produced, imported and used in the African continent. National Animal

Health Diagnostic and Investigation Centre are in a position to do post

mortem diagnosis, also for poultry. Limited laboratory diagnostic

assays are available. However, not much use is being made of this

facility due to a lack of awareness, and a lack of local veterinary staff

monitoring the poultry health situation and stimulating diagnosis.

The effectiveness of the present poultry health delivery services is

limited due to a lack of awareness amongst farmers, inadequately

trained veterinary staff which leads to a suboptimal functioning of the

system. Outbreaks of diseases are common, certainly amongst non-

vaccinated local poultry, which can lead to losses up to 70 %. Inad-

equate diagnosis has led to a fear of HPAI (Avian Influenza) outbreaks

in the country, which however turned to be Gumboro, a prevent-

able disease. Newcastle disease and Gumboro are common diseases

amongst rural and commercial poultry.

Vaccination programmes do not exist and vaccination is used as a

tool to control disease during outbreaks. There are no comprehensive

systems to guarantee cold chain storage and handling of vaccines.

Data on field effectiveness of vaccination are not available.

Steps forward.

In order to improve the situation, focus should be in several areas:

• effectivevaccinationcampaigns

• improvingdiagnosisofdiseases.

• Trainingofveterinariansonpoultryhealthissues

Improving effectiveness of vaccination campaigns.

Currently enough vaccines, against NCD, Gumboro, Fowl pox and Fowl

typhoid are produced at the NVI to meet the demand of commercial

poultry producers. Other vaccines for poultry have to be imported.

Vaccines can only be obtained at the Institute in Debre Zeit, but poultry

farmers from all over the country do buy vaccines, either through lo-

cal government services and where these lack, they usually organise

themselves to send a representative to Debre Zeit to obtain the vac-

cines. Individual private poultry advisers are also active in organising

vaccinations campaigns.

National Animal health Diagnostic and InvestigationCentre NAHDIC),

Sebeta

NAHDIC is the most important laboratory for veterinary disease diagno-

sis in Ethiopia. In Ethiopia there is a network of 14 regional laboratories

with limited diagnostic capacity. Samples are therefore send to NAHDIC

for further diagnosis. This may take up to two to three days from

remote areas.

The facilities are outdated but a new laboratory building is under

construction. This building will house the virology, serology and

molecular biology department. FAO has funded the construction of

a BSL3 building on the compound for the detection of HPAI.

A separate poultry animal unit is under construction. NAHDIC has ambi-

tions to maintain an SPF flock for the production of eggs for research,

A lot of equipment was found to be out of order and it was indicated

that repair and maintenance of equipment was a serious problem.

The diagnostic capabilities for poultry diseases are limited. For sero-

logical assays usually kits are used, mainly ELISA’s. Obtaining these is

very difficult because of bureaucratic procedures. It was indicated that

there were suspicions of Coryza and Marek’s disease in poultry but that

in fact the institute was unable to confirm this. Training on poultry

diagnostic procedures would be necessary to improve the technical

capacities and capabilities of the staff.

Data on NCD via passive surveillance are available. Also, there have

been programs to monitor for HPAI and LPAI in poultry and wild bird.

LPAI viruses have been isolated and identified.

Collaboration with health institutes in Ethiopia exists to support a One

Health policy.

NAHDIC sends samples to OIE reference labs in Europe regularly if they

are unable to make a diagnosis.

There is an annual meeting of the heads of the diagnostic laboratories

(NAHDIC and regional). Also NAHDIC organizes technical training for the

regional laboratories to increase the diagnostic capacity.

NAHDIC staff was very open to possible future e collaboration.


There are some large scale farms, like Genesis Farm, Maranatha

farm and Alema farms and they know how to source the necessary

knowledge and skills even from abroad. The workers on their farms

however also need to be further trained in modern poultry keeping

before they are able to work in modern poultry farms. It is possible,

albeit with certain limitations, to make use of the facilities of the large

scale farms to conduct a training for farmers and extension workers in

the poultry sector.

Small scale farms/ backyard farmers with a few number (5-50) of

chickens are many. In all cases, poultry is not the main source of

income. Agricultural services like the Ethiopian Institute for Agricultural

Research (EIAR) and NGOs like PassionConnect do provide training to

farmers on the basic managerial aspects of poultry keeping before the

farmers do get some chickens (rearing pullets of 12 weeks old) through

the government at subsidized prices. In some cases the farmers are

monitored by the agricultural extension worker. Technical en economic

knowledge about commercial poultry keeping is virtually absent in case

of most rural farmers.

EIAR and agricultural livestock extension staff focus on small scale

farming and not so much on medium or large scale farming. Poultry

is 2nd in terms of importance of livestock species in Ethiopia and thus

the level of involvement of the government is limited as compared to

cattle and other ruminants.

The EIAR has facilities for layers, broilers, parent stock, hatchery and

feed mill and some are used for training. They do have a well trained

staff concerning poultry production.

Prospects and opportunities for Poultry

Farmers experience a good market for their products in the vicinity

of Addis Ababa and anticipate a fast growing market. Most of their

product are bought by middle man selling eggs and meat in Addis

Ababa and Debre Zeit. Some farmers supply the local market and some

producers do have their own shops for meat and eggs around Addis

Ababa.

PassionConnect Ethiopia is an NGO in the region. The training facilities

for horticulture and the hostels are located 9 Km from Debre Zeit. The

head office is in Debre Zeit. To supplement the practical training facili-

ties they have built a hostel for 30 participants and have a conference

room. They do have serious plans to construct a house for layers.

Apart from that, they intend to start a rearing unit for pullets.

This development will have a good prospect for the poultry business

because next to a lack of capital, knowledge and skills in poultry pro-

duction are the biggest challenge.

Several times during the year prices of meat and eggs fluctuate due to

fasting period and religious celebrations. Since the government wants

to stimulate poultry development and reduce on the number of cattle,

mentioned in the strategic plan for 2012 through 2020, it seems to be

very promising to start and invest in poultry farming. Farmers should

not get experience by the “ trial and error method“ but by proper

training and monitoring of farmers. In this region prospects for poultry

are very promising.

• whatisneededtoupgradetheskillsoffarmers/participants

and to improve their theoretical knowledge and above all their

practical skills in modern poultry production.

• intransferringadaptedknowledgeandnewtechnologiesand

in upgrading skills, a practical approach is strived for to improve

skills and competencies for farmers or at any level.

• thepracticaltrainingconceptrequireswellequipped

training facilities so as to enable the management and training

staff to offer optimal practical training to its target groups.

• thetrainingfacilitiesshouldbeadaptedtotheobjectivesof

the different training programmes (such as professional /

educational level of the participants and farmers) and should

be representative of the Ethiopian poultry production chain,

taking into consideration current and expected developments.

• mostlikelytherearedifferenttargetgroupstobetrained

and educated in Ethiopia wher NGOs, agricultural research

and universities offer training programmes at different levels.

Although the principles are the same, each group

(full-time students and professionals) requires a specific

approach, methodology, and training programme and facilities.

The required information in this training needs assessment has been

gathered through interviews, field visits, farm reports, information

from government officials etc.

5.3 Identified Training Needs around Debre Zeit

Introduction

To carry out the survey, the Debre Zeit and Addis Ababa (town and

surroundings) areas were visited from 2 to 7 July 2012.

Description of Target Area

The main geographical areas of the first part of the analysis/

assessment are the poultry and feed production sites located in the

city of Debre Zeit and surroundings. The location of this area is inthe

East Shewa Zone of the Oromia Region, and has a latitude and longi-

tude of 8°45′North 38°59′East with an altitude of 1,920 meters. Oromia

Region has the largest size and one of the 9 ethnically based adminis-

trative regions, which covers 353,632 square kilometers extend from the

western border, curving to the southwestern corner of the country.

The central part of the country is almost entirely covered by this region.

Poultry developments and knowledge gap identified

The number of commercial poultry farmers in the area is very high,

though unknown, also by government statistics. Most farmers do have

a medium size farm between 500 and 4000 birds. The limitation for

farm development is mainly due to the absence of day-old-chicks and

the poor availability and high price of good feed. During the

assessment phase it was established that farmers are mainly focussing

on maintaining and caring for their current flock, but are not operating

as entrepreneurs. They need to be further trained in farm economics

and analysis.

1 On-farm training needs:

• assessknowledgelevelsonpoultryfarmingofsmallscale,

medium scale and large scale commercial farms of both farm

owners and workers/family members. What are the general

education and literacy levels, how many farmers have received

practical training on poultry keeping

• assessmanagementlevelsbyobservingon-farm

performance levels

• analysedivisionoflabouronfarm

• howmuchtrainingisneededonotheraspectsapartfrom

practical farm management

• whatpartorpercentageofpoultryfarmersdoreceivesome

form of training support

2 Farm management oriented training delivery services.

• availableinEthiopia:government,NGO’s,fromcommercial

companies

• whatkindoftrainingactivitiesarecarriedoutcurrently

and which organisations and trainers are involved.

• inwhichareasaremosttrainingactivitiescarriedout

• onwhatlocationsarepoultrytrainingactivitiescarriedout

• whichinternationalorganisationsareactiveinpoultrytraining

programmes in Ethiopia

• whatpoultrytrainingactivitiesarecurrently(orhavebeenin

the recent past) carried out by consortium members

3 Poultry chain training needs. (part of the chain analysis)

• aspartofthepoultrychainanalysis,describemanagement

performance levels of the various key players in the poultry chain

• analysetheneedfortrainingsupport;towhatextenddothey

need to know more about poultry keeping, of do they require

support at other levels such as general management, financial

administration, logistics etc.

4 To asses poultry chain oriented training delivery services.

• identifytrainingpartiesactiveinservicedeliveryaspectsof

the poultry chain: hatchery, animal health/vaccination,

business development.

5.2 Approach

The training needs survey aimed at identifying the needs for training

and to identify one or more organizations in Ethiopia which are able

to invest in training / production facilities for the poultry production

chain and which can operate in such a manner that all types of normal

managerial duties like monitoring, recording, analysis and evaluation

can be practised. The production/training facilities will be exemplary as

far as infrastructure, production levels and management are concerned

and will allow for training in the appropriate technology. The following

points are guidelines for the assessment:

5 Training needs assessment for the Ethiopian poultry sector. Authors: Ernst Beitler, Helmich van Rees.

5.1 Introduction.

The technical and economic performance of the small scale poultry

farmers/ entrepreneurs need improvement and are currently below

professional standards. This is amongst others due to poor availability

of day old chicks and a lack of good quality feed, together with a poor

underdeveloped poultry health system and extension service.

Management levels of small scale farmers is farmers are poor and

they do not use the full potential of their poultry.

Poultry keeping knowledge and management levels require intensive

support to raise production and subsequently family income levels.

Therefore a sub-study focussing on the need for training and training

delivery services was conducted.

The original objective of this survey was to make a first assessment of

training needs in the commercial poultry sector in Ethiopia and to

assess training needs and training delivery capacity both on farm and

in the poultry value chain.

The study can be divided into four different sub-objectives:

1 To assess on-farm training needs

2 To assess farm management training delivery capacity

3 To assess poultry chain training needs

4 To assess poultry chain oriented training delivery services

The results of the assessments will be used to strengthen on-farm

production levels and to strengthen various parts of the poultry chain

essential to a productive poultry sector in Ethiopia.


Potential Training Partners

• Thethreepotentialpartnersbelowallhaveaninterestin

developing the poultry sector in the region and have ties with

the farming community.

• AksumUniversity&AgriculturalCollege;havealreadycoursesfor

farmers, there student also link with the farming community.

• TheWellFoundation;hastrainingfacilitiesandhadexperiencein

organizing training for local farmers with other stakeholders

• BureauofAgriculture;homeofthegovernmentveterinariansand

extension workers

Target Groups

• Farmmanagersandworkers;activeandpotentialpoultryproducers

• TeachingStaffofAksumUniversity,AgriculturalCollege;

those teaching to students and to farmers

• BureauofAgriculture;extensionofficersandveterinarians

Topics to be included in training programmes:

• HealthandHygiene

• Basicbio-securityprinciplesandpractices

• Vaccinationtechniques

• Diseasediagnosis

• Feed

• Poultrynutrition

• Feedingbroilers,pullets,layers

• Rawmaterials

• Housing

• Capacity

• Design

• Climatecontrol

• Equipment

• Recording

• Designofrecordingsystem

• Calculatingtechnicalparameters

• Analysingtechnicalparameters

• Improvementplan

• Economics

• Costpricecalculation

• Analysiseconomicresult

• Improvementplan

• AppliedManagement

• Daily,weeklyandperiodicworkplan

• Acquisitionofspecificskills

5.4 Identified Training Needs around Shire

Introduction

In the context of 2g@there Ethiopia, the woreda of Shire (town and

surroundings) was visited from 8 to 10 July 2012. The town of Shire has

about 50,000 inhabitants and is located one hour’s drive from Axum

to the East.

The area receives heavy rainfall during June, July and August,

after which rainfall is absent for nine months. Since a few years

however, farmers are constructing wells and an indication for the

positive effect of these can be seen on the large number of new wells

appearing everywhere in the landscape.

The area appears to be rich in iron and gold and recently mining

company are settling in the area. The road infrastructure is also recently

improved and some entrepreneurs are anticipating trade opportunities

with the nearby countries Sudan and Eritrea.

Poultry developments

The number of commercial poultry farmers in the area is limited to a

few dozen at most. The number of chickens on these farms does not

exceed a few thousand at the moment. The limitation is mainly due

to the absence of day-old-chicks and feed.

Farmers experience a good market for their products and anticipate

a fast growing market, now that the income is increasing in the area

because of the wells.

Prospects and opportunities for poultry

Probably the only active NGO in the region, the Well foundation

(www.thewellfoundation.nl), is constructing a feed mill that will also

produce poultry feed. Apart from that is has a suitable rearing unit for

pullets and has plans to construct a hatchery as well.

The vice-president of Aksum University, that has a branch in Shire as

well, is Dr. Aklilu Hailemichael, who is an active promoter of poultry.

At Aksum University he initiated poultry units and intends to start a

modest feed mill for his poultry as well. Both him and Dr. Seare Tabeje

Desta, the Dean of the College of Agriculture of the branch of Aksum

University in Shire, intend to consider the farming community in their

academic programmes.

These developments together with the economic development is the

region indicate that prospects for poultry are promising.

Present level of knowledge and skills on poultry production

The visits that were made to poultry farmers and other stakeholders

confirmed once more that practical knowledge and skills are absent,

resulting in poor production results, high mortality and abuse of

antibiotics. There was one exception however, a farmer who had been

working in poultry production in Saudi Arabia. Not just the farmers

were lacking knowledge and skills, but also local extension workers

and veterinarians admitted to lack knowledge and skills on poultry.

Training needs

Considering the present level of knowledge and skills in and around

Shire a complete poultry curriculum for many would be most appropri-

ate. Below the suggested target groups are mentioned and the most

urgent topics are listed

Present level of knowledge and skills on poultry production

The visits that were made to poultry farmers in this region and other

stakeholders like a chicken broker, local feed mill, processing plant,

hatchery e.g. confirmed that there is a big knowledge gap in

technical /practical knowledge and skills and in entrepreneurship

in poultry production and poultry feed at every level.

Poor production results, high mortality and relatively high uses of

antibiotics are more rule than exception. On large scale farms and

poultry enterprises the results are better than on the medium scale

farms as far as records are present and can be analysed.

A start into mall scale poultry farming is subsidized and promoted

by government but the result of this programme, providing 5 chickens

only to a rural farmer has limited effect son the knowledge and

management level of his poultry.

Training needs

As mentioned before the training needs are felt on every level of

education. A complete curriculum designed for every target group

with their specific needs and points of attention would be appropriate.

From the medium scale farmer up to the large companies. From the

college graduate up to the Bachelor and Master level.

Target Groups

The target groups for the training activities are various, and come

from different levels:

• Entrepreneursinpoultryproduction,broilers,layers,hatchery

and feed milling

• Farmmanagersandpoultryfarmworkers;activeandpotential

poultry producers

• NationalAgriculturalresearchCentre,extensionofficers.

Bureau of Agriculture; extension officers and veterinarians

Potential Training Partners

The 4 potential partners below all have an interest in developing the

poultry sector in the region and have strong links with the farming

community.

• NationalAgriculturalresearchCentre;havealready5daycourses

for farmers who wants to start the small business.

They do have research facilities which are used for practical training.

They also have training on marketing of agricultural products

• PassionconnectEthiopiawhohasastronglinkwithpassionconnect

in the Netherlands; has already training facilities and had experience

in organizing training for local farmers with other stakeholders.

They do have a training in value chain.

• AddisAbabaUniversity,FacultyofVeterinaryMedicine.

Has training and education up to DVM level including a module

on poultry production. A small poultry unit for research is present.

Bureau of Agriculture; home of the government veterinarians and

extension workers


7.1.1 Scope of the research

The research conducted by North South Consulting should provide:

• Informationontheusage(bothquantitativeandqualitativedata)

of chicken and eggs in Ethiopian culture for:

a Ethiopian Orthodox

b Muslims

c Protestants

• Additionalinformation

a Information from vendors about

1 Consumers of chicken and eggs

2 Consumer preferences

3 Inflation/devaluation of the product

4 High season and low season

7.1.2 Methodology used

In order to obtain this information 3 different questionnaires have

been developed (ANNEX 1) in order to abstract the information at local

markets. Due to time constraints we were limited to do a short research

in Addis Ababa. The data collectors were able to cover 8 local markets

questioning at each market 20 customers and 15 traders in 2 weeks.

Furthermore, the data collectors were asked to find information from

some known hotels, restaurants and pastries in Addis Ababa to

understand more about quantities needed and problems that are

being faced in supplies if there are any.

Additionally, in order to obtain some final consumer information

another slightly adjusted questionnaire was designed (ANNEX 1b).

For the part of the research, we selected 7 different local markets in

Addis Ababa and at each of them we questioned 20 consumers on their

consuming behavior of poultry products, which added another 140

questioned respondents to this market research.

7.1.3 Limitations

Traditional fasting days have been a limitation on the practical data

collection on local markets, as no chicken sellers or consumers are

present on the market on these days. Moreover, a non compulsory fast-

ing period of two weeks took place during the data collection period.

The study was limited to Addis Ababa; moving through the country

obtaining data from local markets in a similar way needs a proper

preparation of data collectors and would need more time and

additional finances.

Setting up a network in poultry for Ethiopia is also time consuming,

and will need more effort in the future.

7.2 The culture of chicken and eggs in Ethiopia

In the past years the prices of chicken and eggs have been increasing

drastically. In January 200510 it was possible for people to buy 4 eggs

for 1 Ethiopian Birr and at these times the price of one chicken at the

local market would go from 20 up to 25 Ethiopian Birr. At that time a

bread could be bought for 0,50 Ethiopian Birr and 1 kilo of tomatoes for

2 Ethiopian Birr. It is common knowledge that in Ethiopia the economic

development is facing inflation of the currency and on top of this

devaluation. It means that as well the value of money is reducing

while at the same time prices of various food items are rising.

10 Personal shopping basket list Saskia Kloezeman 2005 to provide information to VSO

Ethiopia on market prices. During this year € 1,00 was exchanged for 8 Ethiopian Birr.

7 Consumer research and chicken eggs. Author: Saskia Kloezeman.

Tables

Table 6 General data on market customers 39

Table 7 General information local market sales persons 40

Table 8 General information hotels and café’s 41

Table 9 General information restaurants 41

Table 10 General information supermarkets 42

Table 11 Customer preference local markets 43

Table 12 Customer preference according local market

sales persons 44

Table 13 Customer preference larger consumers 44

Table 14 Prices paid by consumers 45

Table 15 Prices and sales indication local salesmen 46

Table 16 Prices and sales indication larger consumers 47

Table 17 Prices of local and commercial chicken in Debre Zeyt

and Nazreth 48

Table 18 Prices of local and commercial eggs in Debre Zeyt

and Nazreth 48

Table 19 General data on market customers 49

Table 20 Customer preference local market 50

Table 21 Amount of chicken and eggs bought per household 51

Table 22 Consumption per religious group 51

Table 23 Specified overview on usage per religious group 51

Table 24a Chicken consumption 52

Table 24b Egg consumption 52

Table 25 Prices paid by consumers 52

7.1 Background

Ethiopia is a landlocked country in East Africa, surrounded by Eritrea,

South Sudan, Kenya, Somalia and Djibouti. The country currently

contains around 82 million people of which 15% is living in urban

areas. In recent years the Government of Ethiopia decided to strongly

focus on economic development in order to fight poverty and meet

the Millennium Development Goals. Through a clear guideline it is also

possible for foreigners to invest in Ethiopia as a foreign company, or in

partnership with an Ethiopian national as a joint venture. As Ethiopia

has been closed from the outside world for many years, a lot of busi-

ness opportunities have opened up in various sectors. One of these

sectors is the poultry industry, an industry that is very underdeveloped.

For this purpose the Holland Africa Poultry Parners would like to obtain

more information about this specific sector in Ethiopia, as well as on

customer behavior. Having a clear idea about opportunities for invest-

ments in this specific sector will also need a clear overview of the

Potentials on the domestic market.

20 Poultry farming is seen as an activity that anybody could do

without prior knowledge or experience. As a results many start-up

a business and fail after a while. This leads to a high turnover

of entrepreneurs in the poultry business which adds to market

and chain uncertainties

21 No/low domestic production of veterinary drugs and vaccines.

22 Some large scale farmers dump their products on the markets

External environment

Opportunities

1 Export opportunities to Middle East (although: competition

from Brazil)

2 Feed ingredients adequately available in the country (although

export of ingredients is growing)

3 Large and growing domestic (urban) market (but a rise in

demand will only emerge if consumption patterns/preferences

change in favour of modern eggs and chicken)

4 Good feed conversion as compared to beef (intensive production)

5 The use of modern eggs in pastries and cookies (non-table eggs)

6 Bulk consumers (hotels, restaurants, etc.) show a growing tendency

to purchase modern eggs and chicken, this group is growing

7 Support and attention from (business) development programs,

both national and from abroad

8 Current farms can potentially have a big increase in efficiency/output

by applying rather simple management measures

9 EIAR is searching for breeds that are adapted to the local situation

10 Broad outreach to rural farmers through DA’s

Threats

1 Poor cooperation culture amongst farmers and lack of representative

farmers’ organisation

2 Strategies of chain actors are rather short term (actors are not

likely to invest big sums for profits that are to be expected over a

longer time period, actors are not likely to take big risk in investing

in their business)

3 Illiteracy among primary producers

4 No possibilities to evaluate feeding value of raw materials,

most feed used in of unreliable and uncontrolled quality

5 Credit is inadequately available

6 Bureaucratic procedures for investors require good knowledge

of administrative and regulatory affairs and building up good

relationships.

7 Water and electricity inadequately available

8 Poor coordination in value chain.

9 Land tenure system: no title deeds can be obtained.

10 Fluctuation in demand, especially the fasting periods bring down

consumption radically

11 Import regulations: especially tax free regulations

12 “Government officials themselves lack the knowledge of the specific

regulations in the poultry sector. Besides their way of working is

highly bureaucratic’’

13 The position of modern meat and eggs in the eating culture is

currently not good, traditional meat and eggs are preferred

14 Most households purchase their food on traditional markets and

rarely visit a supermarket (only relevant for broiler VC)

15 Start-up of large-scale integrated farms that produce solely for the

export market and that compete for resources with the producers

that produce for the domestic market.

6 SWOT Analysis Authors: Jessica Cornelissen, Adriaan Vernooij,

Alberto Giani, Hilde Duns.

SWOT Analysis of the Ethiopianpoultry sector

The current situation in the poultry industry in Ethiopia can be

summarized in the following SWOT analysis. The SWOT analysis applies

to both the layers as well as the broiler chain. Focus is both on the

internal environment (within the value chain) as on the external

environment (external factors affecting the value chain).

Internal environment

Strengths

1 Poultry keeping well known (be it on village level only)

2 Good source of income for small scale farmer

3 Investment opportunities exist

4 Conducive physical climate

5 Low disease pressure (no HPAI)

6 Poultry production is concentrated in a few poultry hubs in

the country

Weaknesses

1 Irregular supply of one day old chicks (irregular supply from

abroad, low national production)

2 Poor hatching conditions and management.

3 No reliable statistics and market information on poultry

production and demand.

4 Lack of trained workers, little training capacity available

5 Poultry development policies at village level not adapted to

circumstances.

6 No veterinary monitoring

7 Poor management on farm leading to high morbidity and mortality

8 The lack of know-how for the use of technical equipment

like hatcheries

9 Lack of knowledge on all types of management factors

(health care, feeding and growing chicks)

10 Lack of marketing options and market access

11 Lack of knowledge of regulations and requirements for

getting a loan to invest’’

12 Lack of competition in the value chain (monopoly position of

some big farms)

13 There are many small scale producers, a lot of which are at

distant locations from services and supplies

14 The importance of quality feed for growing quality chicken and

eggs is often not recognized

15 No national production of premixes and concentrates, these need

to be imported

16 EPPA is dormant/not yet operational

17 Many small and medium scale farmers are dependent on

primary collectors/middlemen to get their product to the market,

as they have no means/money to obtain a VAT registration

18 There is hardly any infrastructure to bring fresh broiler meat

(unfrozen) on the market

19 Low level of product differentiation of broiler meat


7.2.8 Ethiopian Holidays

The Ethiopian Calendar starts at the end of the rainy season with a

New Year on the 11th of September, which they name the 1st Meskerem.

Names of months are different, as well as there are 13 months in a

year.

11th September 2012 is in Ethiopian Calendar 1st Meskerem 2005.

28th September: Meskel celebration

6th October – 15th November: Tsege fasting (9 days to

commemorate the flight to Egypt)

26th October: Eid al-Adha (Arafa)

15th November: Islamic New Year

24th November – 7th January: Gena fasting (45 days fasting of the

prophets)

7th January: Ethiopian Christmas

19th January: Ethiopian Ephiphany

20th January: Ethiopian Ephiphany for St. Mikael church

24th January: Birthday of Prophet Mohammed

25th February – 27th February: Naneway fasting (3 days for

commemorates the mission of Jonah)

11th March – 5th May: Abey fasting (55 days until Ethiopian Easter)

28th April: Palm Sunday (Hosana)

4th May: Ethiopian Good Friday

5th May: Ethiopian Easter

13th June: Ascension day

23rd June: Pentacost

24th June – 12th July: Fasting of the Apostelles (18 days of fasting,

not compulsory)

26th June: Dehnet fasting (start fasting every Wednesday and Friday)

9th June – 8th August: Ramadan

7th August – 22nd August: Filseta fasting (16 days to

commemorate the ascension of Mary)

7.2.5 Traditional sayings

The saying ´kesbekes, enkulal be igru yehedal´ means: slowly the egg

will get legs and will start walking. This is a saying used in many, many

different situations to express the concept of time. Things do need

time and then they will go by themselves, as not everything should be

pushed. A very African saying and core to describe cultural assumptions

in many different ways and situations.

7.2.6 Traditional food

As in every country, also in the Ethiopian traditional kitchen there is a

first class dish, which is made of chicken. The preparation time of this

dish takes around 7 hours and is called ´Doro Wat´ (chicken stew; recipe

ANNEX 2). The cooking by itself is full of different rituals which start

with the slaughtering of the chicken, while prayers should be said and

the chicken should be killed by a mature man (never by a woman).

Buying a chicken alive is very important as it is the only guarantee for

a family that slaughtering follows the appropriate customs. Cleaning

the chicken and cutting it into 12 pieces is the work of the women.

Preparation of onions, spices and spiced butter to cook in also takes

time, which makes the process for preparation long.

7.2.7 Current situation on chicken and eggs

During the Ethiopian Orthodox holidays (ANNEX 3) all orthodox

Ethiopians prepare ´Doro Wat´, which needs a minimum of 1 chicken

and at least 1 egg for every person in the household. In many situa-

tions these holidays are also celebrated by protestants and in some

situations Muslims as well, as these are normally national holidays.

As Ethiopia has a population of currently around 82 million citizens,

with around 6 people per household, there are around 13,500,000

households of which 60% are orthodox, 25% are Muslim, 10% are

protestant and 5% have another religion. This means that the need

for chicken and eggs is high throughout the year with a peak around

the special holidays. The low season is during the fasting period in the

orthodox religion, when there is a fasting period of two consecutive

months (56 days).

In Ethiopia the share of exotic chicken in total annual poultry meat

and egg production has increased by 118% over the last 20 years.

While during the 1970s and 1980s 1% consisted of imported exotic

breeds, the estimation was that in 2004 2.18% of the total national

poultry population consists of exotic chicken (CSA, 2004-2005).

According to Solomon Demeke (FAO, Animal production and health

division, 2008), the total poultry population has been declined by 64%

over the last 50 years. This decline has mainly been caused by periods

of epidemics, when mortality rates as high as 80% have been recorded

among the local poultry population (Yami and Dessie 1997). As a con-

sequence, the share of exotic imported chicken used for commercial

production has relatively grown. Although the total poultry population

declined, demand especially for exotic fertile eggs, chicks, culled layers

and pullets / cockerels is very high (FAO, Animal production and health

division, 2008).

Except for Addis Abeba, the greater part of the poultry production

and (potential) consumption takes place in these areas. Addis Abeba,

Debre Zeyt and Nazreth, all situated in the region of Oromiya region,

cover 95% of commercial poultry production of the country. In total,

Oromoiya region has around 34,4 % of the national chicken population

and contributes 36 % of the annual national egg and poultry produc-

tion (FAO, Animal production and health division, 2008).

In Ethiopia you can find the 7 Ostrich eggs on the roof of the Orthodox

churches, as representation of the Heavenly and Earthly angels. Some

authorities claim that they are used in recognition of the fact that the

ostrich always guards its eggs most solicitously, and their eggs, it is

hoped, will similarly at all times protect the faithful. During special

holidays people visit monasteries and provide each other with presents

afterwards; these can be very beautifully painted Ostrich egg.

7.2.3 Cultural decorations

The role of chicken is very relevant as women in the Northern parts

of Ethiopia do like to decorate themselves with different tattoos for

religious purposes. People are for example decorated with crosses on

their face, around Gondar, North Wollo and Bahir Dar. In addition,

the women have tattoos which show a pattern of chicken feathers

around the neck. The tattooing is an ancient tradition performed by

few elderly people in the community. They use a little needle to make

small incisions and then rub it with charcoal to get the color in.

Often women also tattoo their gums to make their teeth look more

white. All these traditions of body decorations are painful, but do have

their own traditional function. In local traditional societies one of the

aspects to value the women are these decorations.

7.2.4 Cultural dance and chicken

In the local traditional dance from the North, especially Gondar

but also some of the other areas around Lake Tana, the dance of

women is to imitate the behavior of a chicken. She is doing this by

holding a scarf and waving her skirt or scarf pretending to be the

wings and moving her shoulders accordingly, which is giving the

effect of a chicken shaking its feathers. Moreover she will shake and

move her head like a chicken that is trying to drink water or pick

grain. The chicken in the traditions described above are related

to fertility rituals.

For many years there has been an assumption that chicken and eggs

are scarce on the markets in Ethiopia. In this research we will pay more

attention to the issue of scarcity. In order to understand the relevance

for this product to exist and expand it is important to have more back-

ground information on Ethiopian culture and the role of chicken and

eggs. Ethiopia has a rich, traditional, ancient culture, where animals

do take a prior place in different traditional sayings, music, dancing as

well as on the traditional menu. Talking with Ethiopians about chicken

and eggs nowadays provides people with a huge arena to complain

about the situation.

7.2.1 Background of Ethiopian culture and tradition.

Ethiopia is a Christian country found in the Horn of Africa. Together

with Liberia it is the only country in Africa that has not been colo-

nized and has been able to keep its ancient traditions, language and

religion.

Ethiopia is relevant in the world’s Christian history as well as in Muslim

history. Because of this historical background Christians and Muslims

are living peacefully together with estimated percentages of around

60% Ethiopian Orthodox, 25% Muslim, 10% Protestant Christians and

5% nature religions. During the holidays related to religion, people

from different religions will celebrate this together. Of course the new

year is celebrated by everybody at the same time.

7.2.1.1 Relevant traditions in the Ethiopian Orthodox Church

related to food.

In the Ethiopian Orthodox Church the people are living according to the

strict rules of the Old Testament, which implies that there are restric-

tions on the food they eat. Ethiopians eat only chicken, fish, beef, goat

or sheep; no other animals should be eaten. In some areas some types

of bird are eaten, as they are related to chicken.

Ethiopians living according to the rules of the church are fasting

around half the time of the year. If they are very strict, this fasting is a

vegan diet. They are not allowed to consume meat, dairy products or

eggs during fasting time, . The longest consecutive fasting period is the

one before the Ethiopian Easter (1 week after Western Easter), when

people fast for 56 days. Another relevant fasting period starts around

45 days before the Ethiopian Christmas, which is on 7th January. In the

evening of breaking the fasting, people spend the night in the church,

while at home the mothers with their oldest daughter are preparing

the Ethiopian specialty ´Doro Wat`; a chicken stew, which has a prepa-

ration time of around 7 hours.

During the non fasting period, people will fast on every Wednesday

and Friday.

7.2.2 Eggs in the Orthodox Church

In general the egg is very important in the Orthodox Church as it sym-

bolizes fertility. This is related to the connection that exists between

the Russian, Greek and Ethiopian Orthodox Church, which all constitute

the same root. In the Russian Orthodox church, filigraine and nicely

decorated eggs are very famous and can be seen in the collection of

the Hermitage in St. Petersburg and Amsterdam. In the Greek Ortho-

dox church eggs are being used as a symbol of fertility, just as in the

Ethiopian Orthodox Church.


Of all the participants, 33% attended secondary education, 24% have a

diploma, 16% attended primary education, 14% obtained a degree and

the other 14% stated to have no education.

The participants that have been questioned reflect the religious devia-

tion in Ethiopia. From all participants 62% is Ethiopian Orthodox, 25%

is Muslim and 13% is Protestant. One market shows a higher population

of Ethiopian Orthodox people and on another market you see a higher

amount of Muslim people. This can be explained by the location, as for

example Saris has a high population of Ethiopian Somalians, while in

Kera and around Shola you find some of the main Ethiopian Orthodox

churches in Addis Ababa.

Table 6 General data on market customers

1

Kera

2

Gurd

Shola

3

Cherkos

4

Sheromeda

5

Simien

Shola

6

Shola

7

Saris

Market

8

Akaki

Market

Income generated by

husband 45% 30% 55% 20% 40% 70% 60% 45%

wife 0% 10% 15% 25% 10% 5% 10% 25%

both 55% 60% 30% 55% 50% 25% 30% 30%

family size

children 3.25 2.65 3.55 2.2 3.5 3 3 2.5

families with

additional relatives

or servants

8 6 6 5 8 12 8 5

education

no education 15% 10% 20% 0% 10% 5% 20% 30%

primary school (grade 1

up to 7)

15% 15% 10% 20% 0% 10% 30% 25%

secondary school

(grade 8 up to 12)

30% 25% 40% 55% 55% 30% 20% 10%

Diploma (10 +1 and up) 25% 40% 25% 15% 20% 35% 15% 15%

Degree from University 15% 10% 5% 10% 15% 20% 15% 20%

Religion

orthodox 75% 65% 60% 60% 60% 70% 35% 70%

muslim 15% 15% 35% 35% 35% 0% 50% 15%

protestant 10% 20% 5% 5% 5% 30% 15% 15%

In figure 1 some general information has been provided on the people

that are buying chicken and eggs. This is a random impression of 8

markets in different areas of Addis Ababa. Some of the areas are visited

by the more well off people, while other markets have more customers

from the lower economic segments of society.

The majority of the participants (46%) stated to be housewives with

a husband generating income. Another 42 % of buyers was part of a

family in which both partners are having an income, , working most

often as merchants, civil servants or some sort of private employment.

This private job implies most often being a maid or having a small oth-

er job over which no income tax is paid. The amount of family mem-

bers is on average above 2, with 1 family that stated to have 9 children

in Cherkos and 2 families with 8 children in Cherkos and Simien Shola.

7.3.2 Organization of the research

The 4 data collectors were selected from a group of graduate students

at St Mary University College from the stream Marketing Management.

The induction and orientation for the research has lasted half a day.

They had 10 days in Addis Ababa to collect all the necessary informa-

tion. Within these 10 days they had to consider the fasting days, which

reduced the amount of days collecting data to around 6 days, when

respondents were available on the local markets to provide informa-

tion. The data collectors were able to visit 8 different markets and

questioned 160 buyers and 120 sellers of chicken and eggs. They were

also able to work on visiting 30 larger buyers like restaurants,

supermarkets, café´s and hotels in Addis Ababa.

The 8 markets visited are Kera, Gurd Shola, Cherkos, Sheromeda,

Simien Shola, Shola, Saris and Akaki (also see the map in ANNEX 4).

The markets are spread throughout the city; both richer and poorer

areas of Addis Ababa have been included in order to provide a proper

reflection on differences between markets.

During data collection the research team has been facing problems

which directly relate to and are relevant for the outcomes of the

research, most prominently two fasting days a week from the

Ethiopian Orthodox church, on Wednesday and Friday. Just before

and on the fasting days hardly any people were available to sell

chicken or eggs(and consequently also hardly any buyers of poultry

products). Some of the non-orthodox people asked during these

fasting days would have liked the products for them to be available.

Another big problem for the research team has been the fear people

have to provide information on prices and amounts sold because of

the behavior of the Ethiopian Inland and Revenues offices. On the local

markets a traditional system of selling is still in place, in which people

do not pay tax over the goods that are being sold. Since last year the

government has been hunting people that are trading goods without

having a Tax Identification Number (TIN) and don’t pay taxes by putting

them in prison or charging them huge amounts of money in fines.

7.3.3 Characteristics of the participants

In total four different groups of people have been questioned about

their preferences and ideas about purchasing chickens and eggs.

The biggest group of respondents were 160 local customers and 120

local market sellers. Of this last group, 40 are little shop owners.

Furthermore, 30 larger hospitality and retail companies in different

areas of Addis Ababa have been interviewed.

7.3.3.1 Customers local markets

The 160 individual customers questioned can be divided in religion,

educational background and home situation. The religion has a

huge impact on the consumers’ behavior in the poultry industry.

Educational background provides an indication on the income level

of a person or household and related opportunities of having a

better paid job. The home situation indicates the amount of children,

and how many households are accepting additional relatives living

within the household. Housekeepers that are living with families have

not been included, as they are not participating as a family member

inside the household. The amount of additional relatives living within

a household indicates the spending capacity of the household. Also

information on the differences in price and availability can be provided

for the different locations. Moreover, all customers asked on the local

markets were Ethiopian women, as it is in the Ethiopian tradition that

women select the chicken and eggs to be bought on markets.

11 City government of Addis Ababa http://www.addisababacity.gov.et

This shows 146 fasting days with all the additional 96 Wednesdays and

Fridays, except for 6 weeks after the Easter fasting. The total amount

of fasting days for strict Ethiopian Orthodox people is around 242 days,

which leaves the people with 114 days of non-fasting.

For the Muslim people the Ramadan is as everywhere in the world and

restricts people during 1 month from eating at daytime, but they do eat

in the evening all dishes they like.

The people that are Protestant in Ethiopia, they do not participate

on fasting, they can eat meat, dairy, eggs and so on the whole year

through.

General national holidays, not related to religion:

8th December: Nations, Nationalities & People day

2nd March: Victory of Adwa

1st May: International Labour Day

5th May: Patriots Victory Day

28th May: Downfall of the Derg regime

Source: Tesfa Ethiopian Calendar 2005 E.C.

7.3 Research results

The consumer research has been limited to the different areas of the

capital city Addis Ababa. Addis Ababa contains people from all areas

of Ethiopia and also has a large international community.

7.3.1 General information on Addis Ababa

Addis Ababa is the Federal capital of Ethiopia and a chartered city;

having three layers of government: City Government at the top, 10 Sub

City Administrations in the middle and 116 woreda’s Administrations at

the bottom. The 10 subcities11 are:

Arada, Cherkos, Gulele, Kolfe Keranio, Akaki Kaliti, Nifas Silk-Lafto,

Lideta, Bole, Addis Ketema, Yeka. Some additional subcities will be

added in the near future as Addis Ababa is expanding rapidly and

many more residential areas are being constructed (e.g Bethel, Hayat).

Addis Ababa is geographically located between 8055’ and 9005’

North Latitude and between 38040’ and 38050’ East Longitude and

covers around 54,000 hectares, with a population of more than

5 million people. The average elevation is 2,500 meters above sea level,

with a fairly favorable climate and moderate weather conditions.

The city was established in 1887 by Emperor Menelik II and Empress

Taitu. During Emperor Haile Selassie it expanded more and became

the capital of the Organization for the Unity of Africa, for which the

building of the Economic Commission of Africa has been constructed

which is now facilitating various offices of the United Nations ECA.

Currently the cities blueprint has been developed and roads have been

expanded in order to provide a better access to different areas. Various

business centers and residential areas are currently being constructed.


In Ethiopia it is not possible to find a franchise of McDonald´s

or Kentucky Fried Chicken, as the chicken meat that is being provided

to restaurants, hotels and to supermarkets does not carry the HACCP

certificate. At the moment of research no abbatoirs or meat processing

factories have been established that are able to fulfill the HACCP crite-

ria. One entrepreneur12 does have the intention to construct this facility

and start producing HACCP certified meat, but this is currently

in a preliminary stage.

Table 8 General information hotels and café’s

Hotels 6x Café´s 5x

Name organization

Hilto

n A

dd

is A

bab

a

bes

heb

ele

Hot

el

Jup

iter

In

tern

atio

nal

H

otel

Des

tin

y Ad

dis

Hot

el

Har

mon

y H

otel

Inte

rcon

tin

enta

l Ad

dis

Lim

e Tr

ee C

afe

Bol

e

Bol

e M

ini

Red

Bea

n C

afé,

Re

stau

ran

t

Bon

Caf

é &

Res

tau

-ra

nt

Raiz

el C

afé

Year established 1970 1964 2008 2004 2010 2004 2003 1970 2009 2008 1998

How many branches 2 4 2 2

The Wabeshebele and Hilton Hotel have been established during the

time of the rein of Emperor Haile Selassie. In recent years the amount

of quality hotels is growing rapidly and more hotels are being added

very fast. From the existing hotels some of them do have a branch in

Addis Ababa or are planning to open one.

One of the first Café or Diners (American Style) is Bole Mini. In recent

years many other café´s have opened. They are providing mainly coffee,

tea and drinks, but do offer at the side different cakes and snacks.

Table 9 General information restaurants

Restaurant 8x

Name organization

Stoc

khol

m R

esta

ura

nt

Amst

erd

am R

esta

ura

nt

Leban

ese

Rest

aura

nt

Rom

ina

Rest

aura

nt

Sere

nad

e

Chic

ken

Hu

t

Jew

el o

f In

dia

East

Dra

gon

Ch

ines

e

Year established 2008 2005 2004 1980 2004 2010 2007 2005

How many branches 2 5

Addis Ababa is known for its international character of restaurants.

It is possible to taste international cuisine on an acceptable standard.

In recent years many restaurants have been added of which a couple

are specialized in preparing chicken. For this research we selected the

Chicken Hut, but also restaurants as Zebra Grill and Mama´s Grilled

Kitchen are known for their grilled chicken.

4 Chickens arrive dead, also due to transport problems. Chickens are

being hanged upside down on the side of public transport means,

or being carried in special cages, with too many in one case.

5 Chickens that arrive have diseases. See point 4.

6 Sometimes the sellers don´t get chicken at all, as the middlemen

have run out of supply). This one was the case at the Akaki market

and could be the case for some other markets at the outskirts of

Addis Ababa.

7.3.3.3 Larger consumers of chicken and eggs

Besides the local consumers and sellers it is important to identify the

larger consumers that do need a steady supply for their business.

Different groups of larger consumers have been identified. For this

research we approached 6 different hotels as they do provide breakfast

with eggs. Also 5 known café´s were included that provide products

to their customers in which they use eggs or chicken. Then there are

8 different restaurants which provide different types of international

food in order to understand the regular supply that is not depending

on the Ethiopian calendar. Finally there is an overview of 10 known

supermarkets in Addis Ababa that sell chicken meat and eggs.

7.3.3.2 Local market sales person

In this chapter general data of chicken sellers and small shop

owners is provided. The small shops in general sell eggs beside all kind

of other products. On local markets in Ethiopia you see a huge amount

of fixed little shops, while during daytime you will also find on special

open areas temporary salesmen, only coming to the markets if they

have something to sell. At local markets, chickens are sold by people

that don’t have a permanent shop. Often, these chicken sellers also sell

eggs in big hand-woven baskets.

Eggs are being sold in many different ways. There are shops that

always sell eggs at the side of their assortment of food and household

items. Then there are irregularly people coming to local markets to sell

a basket full of eggs.

Table 7 General information local market salespersons

1

Kera

2

Gurd

Shola

3

Cherkos

4

Sheromeda

5

Simien

Shola

6

Shola

7

Saris

Market

8

Akaki

Market

How many chicken

sellers at this market

11 9 10 20 15 20 16 10

How many egg sellers at the market

only eggs 1 2 6 10 5 10 4 6

little shop with many

other items

10 many 15 10 20 10 many 40

From where do you get the chicken?

d/t local farmers 50% 70% 80% 0% 100% 100% 0% 100%

big organization 0% 0% 20% 0% 0% 0% 100% 0%

Other 60% 60% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 10%

The markets visited do have fixed shops, of which many of them are

selling eggs on the side. Adequate information on prices, supply and

quantities will be obtained from this group of participants.

Most of the egg sellers are getting their supplies from different in-

dividual local farmers; there is one market in Saris that gets all its

supply from a large organization. At some of the markets the supply

comes through middlemen from the countryside. There are also shops

that have some of their supply via middlemen and the rest of supply

through direct contact with local farmers.

When asked what major problems are being faced on the supply side,

most of the sellers stated:

1 Eggs are broken upon arrival. This is due to transport problems;

the eggs are not being properly packed. Most of the eggs arrive in

big handmade baskets.

2 Eggs are rotten. The moment eggs have been collected upon the

time they are being provided to the market has taken too long.

No cooling is being used.

3 There are not enough eggs provided. Sometimes sellers only get

half of the amount they ordered due to lack of produce. 12 The entrepreneur does not want to be mentioned yet, as they are working

on finalizing some procedures.


local market, while eggs are equally bought at the local market as

well as in local shops.

During holidays on average 13 eggs per family were bought. Some

respondents stated that if the products would be cheaper somehow,

they would buy more, but also more regularly. Some respondents select

to celebrate their holidays only once or twice a year by preparing Doro

Wat; throughout of the year they can not afford to prepare this special

dish.

Chicken and eggs are not only being used during holidays or in a Doro

Wat dish. Especially Muslim participants stated to be using chicken for

soup or as ´arosto´, which means fried or grilled chicken. Eggs are also

often used for breakfast as an omelet, scrambled or in a sandwich.

Table 11 Customer preference local markets

1 Ke

ra

2 G

urd

Sh

ola

3 Ch

erko

s

4 Sh

erom

eda

5 Si

mie

n S

hol

a

6 S

hol

a

7 Sa

ris

Mar

ket

8 A

kaki

Mar

ket

You buy chicken mostly at

local market 90% 100% 100% 100% 100% 85% 100% 100% 97%

local shop 0% 0% 30% 30% 25% 5% 0% 0% 13%

Supermarket 10% 5% 0% 0% 5% 15% 0% 0% 5%

You buy eggs mostly at

local market 50% 60% 80% 100% 95% 30% 100% 100% 77%

local shop 100% 95% 75% 80% 95% 65% 50% 55% 77%

supermarket 10% 5% 0% 5% 0% 5% 0% 0% 3%

grow own chicken 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 5% 5% 1%

Amount of eggs for the holiday

Range 2 - 20 5 - 20 5 - 30 5 - 25 5 - 30 10 - 40 8 - 20 5 - 16

Mediate 10,7 12,63 15,05 12,8 13,65 18,85 13,85 9,6

Buy chicken

alive 95% 100% 70% 85% 85% 95% 90% 95% 89%

dead and cleaned 10% 10% 50% 20% 20% 10% 30% 45% 24%

All customers agreed that local eggs are more tasteful than larger

commercial eggs. For chickens, the same principle applies; rather small

and with a lot of bones instead of larger and more meat. This implies

that people find taste more relevant than quantity. Of all the people

asked, 89% is purchasing chicken alive, while 11% buys chickens that

are dead and cleaned. Around 13% of all respondents sometimes buy

chicken alive and sometimes already dead and cleaned. In Cherkos at

least 30% of the questioned people are always purchasing dead and

cleaned chicken. In other areas this percentage is lower, although in

Akaki 45% of the questioned people stated to buy sometimes alive

chickens and sometimes chickens that are dead and cleaned.

People stated that they would like to buy chicken dead and cleaned

on more occasions throughout the year as it saves them a lot of time

preparing food. Most of these respondents are both working fulltime.

It was also noted that non-orthodox respondents commented on the

lack of availability of poultry during orthodox fasting times, as they

would like to buy poultry products also in these periods.

In general 97% of respondents prefer to buy their chicken on the

7.3.4.1 Consumers preferences

As in Ethiopia it is tradition for people to kill their own chicken

following the necessary rituals in order to make an excellent Doro Wat,

it can be assumed that people prefer to buy chicken alive. Also, there

seems to be a clear preference for local eggs. In general a capital city of

a country will show the first change in traditions, so people deciding to

buy dead and cleaned chicken saving time, seems most likely to

happen in Addis Ababa. We asked respondents where they prefer to

buy their chicken as well as their eggs.

Ethiopians are known to be conservative in the way they prepare their

food and in their use of basic ingredients. One of the assumptions is

also that Ethiopians prefer to buy Ethiopian chicken with less meat,

and local eggs, which are smaller and have a relatively dark yolk.

Table 10 General information supermarkets

Name organisation

New

Yor

k Su

per

mar

ket

Bel

onia

s Su

per

mar

ket

Fan

tu S

uper

mar

ket

Bam

bi´

s Su

per

mar

ket

Cen

tral

Su

per

mar

ket

Fres

h C

orn

er

Abad

er S

uper

mar

ket

Day

to

Day

Su

per

mar

ket

Shoa

Su

per

mar

ket

Frie

nd

ship

Su

per

mar

ket

Year established 2002 1999 2002 1998 1998 2006 2007 1998 2003

How many branches 2 5 2 4

As spending power is growing as a consequence of economic growth

in recent years (ANNEX 5), more people are attending supermarkets.

For this purpose many supermarkets have been expanding their exist-

ing facilities, started a branch, next to the sprouting of new supermar-

kets in Addis Ababa. One of the most famous and older supermarkets

is Bambi´s, mainly because of their large amount of foreign imported

items. They attract a large amount of the expat community and the

diaspora as customers. Some other supermarkets also started importing

goods. All supermarkets sell chicken and eggs and provided sufficient

information on prices and customer preferences.

7.3.4 Research outcomes

Above some basic relevant information on the supply chain of chicken

and eggs has been provided together with information about the

participants in this research. It shows the attitude towards these

products for Ethiopia. In this part we will go into more detail on

preferences of customers and the prices that have been paid before

and are being paid currently.


The majority of hotels, cafés and restaurants are using the ferenj

chicken. The main reasons given for this choice:

1 More meat on the chicken

2 Hygiene, as the local chickens are not always properly cleaned

or might have had a disease.

Cafés and restaurants only require specific parts of the chicken, while

17% of the hotels are purchasing the whole chicken.

7.3.4.2 Prices of chicken and eggs

In recent years many prices of basic food products have been

rising quickly, while at the same time the value of money went down.

This problem of devaluation and inflation has been managed by the

Ethiopian government by fixing exchange rates and introducing price

caps, by for example setting maximum prices for staple food products,

tomatoes and onions.

Understanding the increase of prices in relation to the emotions of

consumers is part of this research. The data collectors asked about

prices of last year, so had to depend on their respondents memories

and their concomitant feelings about the perceived price rise.

Table 14 Prices paid by consumers

1 Ke

ra

2 G

urd

Sh

ola

3 Ch

erko

s

4 Sh

erom

eda

5 Si

mie

n S

hol

a

6 S

hol

a

7 Sa

ris

Mar

ket

8 A

kaki

Mar

ket

How much do you pay for chicken

Range 70 - 12013 70 - 110 80 - 150 90 - 120 100 - 140 60 - 160 65 - 120 60 - 120

Mediate 91,5 96,25 115,75 115,25 119,75 107,5 96,5 90,5

How much did you pay last year for a chicken?

Range 120 - 170 70 – 130 60 - 120 70 - 150 75 - 110 65 - 140 75 - 130 60 - 125

Mediate 141 97,5 97,5 99,5 99,5 102,25 109,25 85,25

What is the maximum you paid for a chicken?

Range 120 - 170 120 - 170 110 - 170 120 - 160 130 - 160 110 - 160 110 - 160 100 - 160

Mediate 147,5 154,25 138,5 144 145,75 133,25 145 136

How much do you pay for an egg now?

Range 2,10 - 2,40 2 - 2,20 2,3 - 2,6 2,15 - 2,5 2,40 - 2,50 from 2 - 3 from 2 - 3 2 - 2,5

Mediate 2,215 2,115 2,455 2,3825 2,445 2,4125 2,4475 2,225

How much did you pay last year for an egg?

Range 1,70 - 2,10 1,70 - 1,90 1,75 - 2,2 1,5 - 2,1 1,65 - 2,45 1,65 - 2,3 1,75 - 2,1 1,7 - 2

Mediate 1,8525 1,805 1,9725 1,8675 1,8425 1,9325 1,9375 1,95

The chicken sellers were asked who their customers are as they were

assumed to be Ethiopians, but at some markets, like for example Saris,

30% of the buyers are foreigners, while in Akaki 60% of the buyers

were restaurants and hotels.

While consumer respondents, reached a 100% score on the prefer-

ence for local chicken and local eggs, the same question to sellers had

a slightly different result with 9% of the sellers stating that there is a

preference for foreign chicken as well as foreign eggs. These answers

were mainly provided at the Saris market, where foreigners are also

buying poultry.

The large consumers belong to a different kind of community than

the ones that are buying on the local markets. Many of the products

of large consumers have already been processed before being sold.

The supermarkets do state that in general around 45% of better off

Ethiopians do buy eggs and chicken in their facilities, against 20%/25%

of the diaspora and 30%/40% of the foreign community. In the

supermarkets they do sell mainly ferenj chicken. At all supermarkets

interviewed whole chickens are sold, while in 70% of the

supermarkets it is possible also to buy specific parts of the chicken.

13 €1,00 = 22 Ethiopian Birr (July/August 2012)

Table 13 Customer preference large consumers

Large consumers Hotels Café’s Restaurants Supermarkets

Who is buying eggs?

Foreigners 83% 80% 88% 60%

Diaspora 50% 80% 50% 50%

Ethiopian higher income 67% 100% 63% 90%

Who are buying chicken?

Foreigners 100% 100% 88% 80%

Diaspora 67% 80% 63% 40%

Ethiopian higher income 67% 100% 75% 90%

What does the customer prefer?

Local chicken 50% 0% 38% 50%

Ferenj chicken 83% 100% 88% 90%

What does the organization buy?

Whole chicken 17% 0% 0% 100%

Specific parts 83% 100% 100% 70%

Table 12 Customer preference according to local market vendors

1 Ke

ra

2 G

urd

Sh

ola

3 Ch

erko

s

4 Sh

erom

eda

5 Si

mie

n S

hol

a

6 S

hol

a

7 Sa

ris

Mar

ket

8 A

kaki

Mar

ket

Who is buying chicken

Local buyers 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 90% 100%

Foreigners 0% 0% 10% 0% 0% 0% 30% 10%

Restaurants/hotels 0% 0% 10% 0% 0% 0% 10% 60%

What is the best chicken

local 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 90% 100%

Ferenj 10% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 20% 40%

What is the best egg

Local 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 90% 100%

Ferenj 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 10% 20% 40%


The larger consumers do sell their products regularly throughout the

year, being less influenced by traditional holidays. Their prices are

in general higher than on the local markets, although the price of

dead and cleaned chickens are below the prices of chicken that can

be bought alive on local markets. This is one of the most remarkable

outcomes of this research.

The larger consumers did not have any problem with supply as they

are supplied mainly by Alema or Elfora farms, which are able to guar-

antee a continuous supply of chicken and eggs. There are a few large

producers (ANNEX 6) of chicken and eggs working on a professional

level to provide for the local market. Based upon the information

Mrs. R. Duns obtained during her research, it was found out that for

these larger producers it is not interesting to intensify production to

increase profits. They reason that if they intensify production, prices

of their products will go down, while their production costs stay the

same.

7.3.5 Prices of chicken, chicken meat and eggs in Debre Zeyt

and Nazareth

For a comparison on prices between Addis Ababa and other larger cities

in the Oromiya region, Ms. R. Duns acquired additional data in Debre

Zeyt and Nazareth.Figure 12 and 13 give an overview of the prices of

commercial and local chicken (meat) and eggs among different groups

in the retail sector in these cities. Prices are stated in the last weeks of

July 2012, just after the Ethiopian Orthodox fasting time in which there

is possible demand increase. It has to be noted that in case of the

price of chicken (meat), the price is identified per whole chicken and

not per kg. To give an indication of the weight of local and commercial

chicken, the slaughter weight at 12 months for a local chicken is on

average 1.5 kg while the slaughterweight at 8 weeks for a commercial

chicken is already 1.8 kg. In case of eggs, average weights for respec-

tively local and commercial eggs are 38 and 56 grams (CACC 2003 and

Alemu Yami 1997).

Figure 12 shows that the commercial cleaned and frozen chicken is

relatively cheap compared to the alive local chicken sold on the local

market. Figure 13 shows that in supermarkets, commercial eggs are

often cheaper than local eggs, although in Debre Zeyt and Nazareth it

does not beat local eggs on the local market.

When compared with Addis Ababa prices, it becomes clear that they are

a little lower in Debre Zeyt and Nazareth. Furthermore, in Debre Zeyt

and Nazareth no local clean and frozen chicken were found. During

field research in Awassa (begin July 2012), which is located 270km south

of Addis Ababa and has a population of 258,808 (CSA,2007), cleaned

and frozen chicken were found in several shops. Several women from

Awassa established their own trade in cleaned and frozen local

chicken. These women made part of their house available for freezers

in which they kept frozen local chicken. Supermarkets, hotels,

restaurants and Ethiopian households buy these.

For this research it was relevant to obtain sales prices from sellers as

well. They provided prices that show no big difference from what

consumers stated to be paying.

In addition we wanted to check the explanation of scarcity, which

at some markets has not been a problem, while at other markets it

certainly has. Most sellers stated that during holidays there are

serious problems of supply of chicken and eggs and that they sell out

too quickly.

In one market it was stated that as they are the last point to be

supplied by the merchants, they sometimes don´t get any chicken or

eggs to be sold at all.

Concerning greediness, some of the local small sellers are making only

small profits, because of transport expenses and bad products (rot-

ten eggs, dead chicken etc.); this has to be taken into account when

calculating the price. As they are also confronted with price fluctua-

tions they sometimes have to sell their products below the prices they

bought them for, while at other instances making a nice profit. Many

of the temporary sellers obtain a small loan or micro credit in order to

purchase eggs and chickens to start up their sales business.

Table 16 Prices and sales indicationlarge consumers

Large consumers Hot

els

Café

’s

Rest

aura

nts

Sup

erm

arke

ts

Chicken per day (sales/usage)

Local 0 4

Foreign 40 6,3 50 19

Price of chicken

Local 0 128 76

Foreign 98 67 110 83

Eggs per day (sales/usage)

Local 0 100 25 100

Foreign 233 350 25 305

Price of eggs

Local Na Na Na 3

Foreign Na Na Na 3

to retrieve information on inflation rates which is attached in ANNEX 5

in order to understand the last years’ increase of prices, monthly

increase of prices and also the expected increase of prices in the future.

During the holidays prices of chicken and eggs are skyrocketing and

consumers sometimes pay double prices for a chicken in comparison

with regular days on which chicken is available. Ethiopians do com-

plain about this, but at the same time pay the necessary amount of

money as being stated.

As salaries are still low in Ethiopia, it has to be understood that not

everybody can afford to purchase a chicken for each holiday. Respond-

ents identified scarcity of poultry products as one of the major reasons

why prices during holidays go up, while the greediness of merchants is

provided as a second explanation for temporary increases of prices.

During the research we received different information concerning the

prices for chicken and eggs. As prices on local markets are never fixed,

the prices people pay are related to their own negotiation skills as well

as the type of chicken they buy. There are younger and older chickens

for sale, as well as bigger and smaller ones, which all influences the

price. This is why besides showing the mediate price of chicken and

eggs per market we also show the minimum and maximum prices paid

to help understand the range and the prices people are willing to pay.

Some markets have customers from higher income classes,

while at other markets many consumers from the lower income classes

are purchasing their goods.

The information related to last year’s prices is according to respond-

ents’ memory, which is less reliable. Additionally, we have been able

Table 15 Prices and sales indication local sellers

1 Ke

ra

2 G

urd

Sh

ola

3 Ch

erko

s

4 Sh

erom

eda

5 Si

mie

n S

hol

a

6 S

hol

a

7 Sa

ris

Mar

ket

8 A

kaki

Mar

ket

Chicken sellers

Maximum

sold per

day

8,8 8,6 12,4 18,5 33,5 37 8,4 14,5

Maximum

price

chicken

106,5 116,00 119,00 117,00 114,00 132,00 89,00 146,50

Maximum

price egg

2,29 2,275 2,48 2,555 2,48 2,505 2,19 2,2

Enough

chicken for

selling

70% 80% 100% 0% 90% 50% 0% 50%

Enough

eggs for

selling

80% 70% 60% 80% 60% 80% 0% 50%

Local shops (eggs only)

Maximum

price egg

2,68 2,4 2,46 12,5 2,53 2,42 2,37 2,36

Enough

eggs for

selling

20% 0% 20% 60% 60% 40% 60% 60%


4.3.1 Consumers preferences

Ethiopians are known to be conservative in the way they prepare their

food and what they use as basic ingredients. Moreover, the assumption

is that Ethiopians prefer to buy local chickens (with less meat)

and local eggs (which are smaller, but have a more colorful yolk).

4.3 Research outcomes

In this part we will go into more detail on preferences of customers

and prices that are currently being paid. The first research has already

shown more extensively the increase of prices for chicken and eggs in

recent years. This research will focus more on the quantity of poultry

products people state to consume per month or per year.

We differentiated the participants according to religion because

the expectation is that consumer behavior between the different

religious groups can be significant.

Table 19 General data on market customers

1 Bet

hel

2 Ko

lfe

3 G

erji

4 Bol

e Rw

anda

5 As

co

6 L

afto

7 Si

mie

n M

aseg

adga

Aver

age

Aver

age

1st

rese

arch

Income generated by

husband 40% 35% 20% 5% 40% 90% 80% 39% 46%

wife 0% 0% 15% 20% 10% 5% 20% 10% 13%

both 60% 65% 65% 75% 50% 40% 80% 62% 42%

Family size

children 2 2 2 2 2 3 1 2 3

additional relatives or

servants

11 7 5 4 8 9 3 7 7

Education

No education 40% 30% 0% 40% 10% 5% 40% 24% 14%

Primary school (grade 1

up to 7)

0% 0% 5% 20% 0% 10% 20% 8% 16%

Secondary school

(grade 8 up to 12)

10% 10% 5% 20% 55% 30% 20% 21% 33%

Diploma (10 +1 and up) 25% 40% 70% 10% 20% 35% 20% 31% 24%

Degree from University 25% 20% 20% 10% 15% 20% 0% 16% 14%

Religion

orthodox 35% 35% 80% 60% 60% 30% 50% 50% 63%

muslim 35% 40% 20% 35% 35% 35% 30% 33% 25%

protestant 30% 25% 0% 5% 5% 35% 20% 17% 13%

The same data collectors as in the first research were involved to

obtain the information from these markets. They only surveyed

consumers, which reduced the amount of work and the amount of

days they needed in order to finalize the data collection. In this report

we will display the average outcomes of this research. Moreover, we

will display the average outcomes of the first research in the last

column of every table.

7.4.2 Characteristics of the participants

This additional research has been covering 7 local market places in

Addis Ababa, where at every market 20 female buyers have been

questioned according to the instructions and questionnaire provided.

The 140 individual customers questioned can be again divided in

religion, educational background and home situation.

The religion has a huge impact on the consumers’ behavior in the

poultry industry. Educational background provides an indication on

the income level of a person or household and related opportunity to

having a better paid job. The household situation indicates the amount

of children, and additional relatives living within it. Housekeepers

living with families have not been included, as they are not

participating as a family member inside the household. The amount

of additional relatives living within a household indicate the spending

capacity of the household. Furthermore, information on price

differences and availability can be provided for the various markets.

Moreover, all customers asked on the local markets were Ethiopian

women, as it is Ethiopian tradition that women select and buy

chickens and eggs on local markets.

In figure 1 some general information has been provided on consumers

of poultry products in Addis Ababa. This is a random impression of 7

markets in different areas of Addis Ababa. Some of the areas are visited

by more well off people and other markets have more customers from

the lower economic segments of society. In addition, we calculated the

average of these 7 markets and reflected this with the average of the

other 8 markets from the 1st research.

The majority of participants 62% stated that in their household,

husband and wife are both working and generating incomes,

with 39% running a household in which only the man gains an

income. This is a slight difference with the 1st research and can be

explained by the city’s outskirt locations of the markets. The average

amount of family members was approximately 2, with a maximum of

5 children per family. Of all participants 21% attended secondary

education, 31% have a diploma, 8% attended primary education,

16% obtained a degree and the other 24% stated to have no

education. The respondents reflect religious deviation in Ethiopia;

55% is Ethiopian Orthodox, 33% is Muslim and 17% is Protestant.

7.4 Additional Consumer Research

In order to obtain final consumer information a slightly adjusted ques-

tionnaire was used to also gain data on the quantities of purchased

poultry products. We selected 7 different local markets in Addis Ababa,

and at each of them we questioned 20 consumers on their consum-

ing behavior of poultry products, which added another 140 questioned

respondents to this market research. This research clarifies the buying

behavior of poultry products in Addis Ababa and provides an indication

for other cities in Ethiopia, although prices there might be slightly

different. The amount of consumption is significantly different per

market area and does not provide hints for other parts of Ethiopia.

7.4.1 Organization of the research

The 7 additional markets visited in October 2012 were Bethel, Kolfe,

Gerji, Bole Rwanda, Asco, Lafto and Simien Masegadga, which can also

be found on the map in ANNEX 4. The markets are spread through-

out the city, which created a good addition to the location of the

first research and has provided for a strong coverage of Addis Ababa.

The richer and poorer areas of Addis Ababa have been included more

or less equally in order to provide a proper reflection on differences

between markets.

Table 17 Prices of local and commercial chicken in Debre Zeyt and Nazreth,July 2012

Debre Zeyt Nazareth

Local chicken

(alive on local market)

74 - 78 76 - 78

Commercial chicken

(cleaned and frozen)

87 98

Table 18 Prices of local and commercial eggs in Debre Zeyt and Nazreth in Birr, July 2012

Debre Zeyt Nazareth

Local egg on local market 1.95 – 2.17 1,84 – 1,95

Local egg supermarket/

minimarket

2,6 – 2.82 2,6

Commercial egg supermar-

ket/ minimarket

2,39 - 2,6 2,39


On average, people stated to consume around 64 eggs per month with

a maximum of 124 in Kolfe and a minimum of 39 eggs in Asco. Kolfe is

an area near Mercato, where many traders can be found. Most of these

traders are Muslim and thus non-fasting, which explains the higher

consumption of poultry products. In Asco many poor people reside,

which explains the lowest consumption of poultry products in this

market research. In Bethel, many relatively wealthy people are

currently constructing houses or already reside here.

As figure 8 shows, Muslims use on average most poultry products.

This is obviously to a large extent caused by fasting customs among

orthodox Ethiopians. For the difference with protestants no clear

explanation could be found.

4.3.3 Consumption of poultry related to religion

In this additional survey we also specified the consumption of poultry

products per religious community. Some differences were identified,

but the buying power of customers also here seems the most impor-

tant determinant of the quantity of consumption of poultry products.

Some respondents stated (just like in the first research) that they would

like to buy more poultry products, but that they find them extremely

expensive.

Table 23 Specified overview on usage per religious group

1 Bethel 2 Kolfe 3 Gerji 4 Bole Rwanda 5 Asco 6 Lafto 7 Simien

Masegadga

% ch eggs % ch eggs % Ch eggs % ch eggs % ch eggs % Ch Eggs % ch eggs

orth 35 30 77 35 32 114 80 10 43 60 9 31 60 15 55 30 15 43 50 13 35

musl 35 24 82 40 26 101 20 18 54 35 17 57 35 8 10 35 13 61 30 35 100

prot 30 29 101 25 30 175 0 0 0 5 6 50 5 11 38 35 8 32 20 7 10

7.4.3.2 Consumers behavior

In this second round of market research, more specific questions were

asked in relation on the amount of chicken and eggs that people are

using. The numbers obtained from consumers are estimates and some

of the consumers actually were not able to provide exact amounts,

as they had no accurate idea of how many poultry products they are

consuming.. Some participants again stated that the consumption

of poultry products is related to their financial situation and income

security.

The average consumption is 18 chickens per household per year, with a

maximum average of approximately 29 chickens and a minimum was

average of only 11 chickens per year.

Table 22 Consumption per religious group

Chicken per year Eggs per month

Orthodox 18 57

Muslim 20 66

Protestant 13 58

Table 21 Amount of chicken and eggs bought per household

1 Bet

hel

2 Ko

lfe

3 G

erji

4 Bol

e Rw

anda

5 As

co

6 L

afto

7 Si

mie

n M

aseg

adga

Aver

age

Aver

age

1st

rese

arch

How many chicken do you buy a year

Range 18-48 15-40 5-30 6-40 4-20 5-40 6-40

Average 28 29 12 14 11 12 19 18 24

How many eggs do you buy per month

Range 70 -160 24-200 15-100 30-100 20-55 6-120 10-100

Average 91 124 46 50 39 47 50 64 39

It was also noted that people commented on the lack of availability of

poultry during orthodox fasting times.

In general 89% of respondents prefer to buy their chicken on the

local market, while 38% stated to sometimes buy chicken in the

supermarket. Chicken is hardly bought (and available) at local shops.

Foreggs, 95% are bought at local shops, 74% of participants stated to

buy them also at local markets and 25% mentioned to sometimes buy

eggs in the supermarket.

During holidays people buy on average 17 eggs per family (in the first

research this was 13. Respondents stated that, if poultry products

would be somehow cheaper they would buy more, but also more

regularly. Some people select only one or two holidays to prepare

Doro Wat, as for them it is too expensive to prepare it each holiday.

All customers agreed that local eggs are more tasteful than larger

commercial eggs and backyard chickens more tasteful than dead and

cleaned commercial chickens. This seems to imply that people find

taste more relevant than quantity. Of all respondents, 86% are

purchasing their chickens alive, while 41% (also) buys chicken that is

dead and cleaned. In Lafto 85% of respondents are sometimes

purchasing dead and cleaned chicken. In other areas this percentage

is lower, although in Bethel and Kolfe also 65% responded to do so.

Respondents, most of them in a full-time occupation, stated they

would like to buy chicken dead and cleaned on various occasions

throughout the year, as it saves them a lot of food preparation..

Table 20 Customer preference local markets 1

Bet

hel

2 Ko

lfe

3 G

erji

4 Bol

e Rw

anda

5 As

co

6 L

afto

7 Si

mie

n M

aseg

adga

Aver

age

Aver

age

1st

rese

arch

You buy chicken mostly at

local market 55% 70% 100% 100% 100% 100% 100% 89% 97%

local shop 5% 10% 70% 5% 25% 0% 0% 19% 13%

Supermarket 75% 85% 30% 20% 5% 15% 0% 38% 5%

You buy eggs mostly at

local market 35% 35% 95% 80% 95% 100% 80% 74% 77%

local shop 80% 95% 95% 100% 95% 100% 100% 95% 77%

Supermarket 70% 60% 0% 0% 0% 45% 0% 25% 3%

grow own chicken 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 0% 1%

Amount of eggs for the holiday

Range 15 - 30 10 - 20 4 - 40 10 - 40 7 - 20 10 - 45 5 - 40 4-45 6-50

Mediate 20 16 18 20 13 20 16 17 13

Buy chicken

Alive 55% 65% 100% 100% 85% 100% 100% 86% 89%

dead and cleaned 65% 65% 15% 20% 20% 85% 20% 41% 24%


7.5.1.1 Poultry usage

In Ethiopia there are an estimated 13,500,000 households, of which

around 830,000 (5 million people) are based in Addis Ababa.

Consumer behavior for poultry products differs per market area,

religion and even per family. It is related to cultural customs, buying

power or income security.

Through a calculation based upon population rates and this research,

estimations on household usage can be made. In a regular month,

an Ethiopian family in Addis Ababa uses around 64 eggs. Eggs are not

only used for boiling or frying, but in Ethiopia it is very normal that

people use their eggs for homemade pastries as well.

For holidays, some people purchase 2 or 3 chickens in order to prepare

enough food for their family, while others can only afford it for 1 or 2

holidays a year. From the 8 different markets the median of all of them

was taken, which led to an estimated average of 13 eggs per holiday

per household.

In one year an Ethiopian family in Addis Ababa consumes around 18

chickens. This is an average of all religious groups taken together. In

the figure below we were able to specify the usage of chicken and

eggs per religion, in order to provide a clear insight in different

customs. Muslims use on average most poultry products. This is

obviously to a large extent caused by fasting customs among orthodox

Ethiopians. For the difference with protestants no clear explanation

could be found.

For one orthodox holiday in Addis Ababa, if all orthodox inhabitants

(60% of the population) would decide to make Doro Wat, 498,000

chicken and 6,474,000 eggs are needed (based upon 13 eggs per prepa-

ration as a mediate amount). There are around 5 big Orthodox holidays

(Meskel, Epiphany, Christmas, Easter and New Year) throughout the year

when people try to obtain a chicken and all necessary ingredients to

prepare Doro Wat. Of course not all households will be able to do so

and many will select one or two holidays per year for preparing this

special dish.

A national orthodox holiday in Ethiopia takes the lives of

8,100,000 chicken and needs around 105,300,000 eggs in order

to make sure that there is enough for Orthodox Ethiopians to

celebrate this holiday with the famous Doro Wat.

celebrated New Year celebration by all religions implies the

consumption of 13,500,000 chicken and 175,500,000 eggs on

that very day!

A normal orthodox family eats around 12 chicken stews

(24 chickens)and 312 eggs throughout the year.

Many Ethiopians stated to prepare also other dishes with

chicken and eggs.

For each town district, we were able to identify the demographic

composition. For every market we specified an average consumption

of poultry products, related to religion. A diverse picture was gathered;

in some markets orthodox consume most chickens and eggs, while

in other markets, Muslims or protestants are consuming most poultry

products.

We took the total averages of these 7 markets and divided it into the

different religions. For both chicken and eggs it is clear that the Muslim

population is a relatively high consumer of both products.

It is important to keep in mind that during the orthodox fasting season

and when religious holidays are approaching, it is very hard for people

to obtain chicken. Eggs are available throughout the year, although

around holidays scarcity exists as more people want to buy eggs.

7.4.3.4 Prices of chicken and eggs

We also asked salesmen and large consumers to provide us with prices

of poultry products in order to verify people’s feelings and thoughts

about price rises. Also in Ethiopia traditions are slowly eroding and the

government is stricter on controlling VAT payments. More often people

are punished when not fulfilling their tax obligations. However, when

implementing and starting to enforce taxation laws, the Ethiopian

government did not provide time or proper information to local sellers,

which creates uncertainty and anxiousness among them

When the research was carried out different information about prices

for poultry products was gathered. As prices on local markets are never

fixed, the prices people pay are determined by their own negotiation

skills as well as the type of chicken they buy. Moreover, variables like

age and size of the chicken influence the price. There, besides median

prices also the minimum and maximum prices paid per market are

presented.

During holidays prices of chicken and eggs are skyrocketing and

people do pay sometimes double prices for a chicken compared to

non-holidays. As salaries are still low in Ethiopia not everybody can

afford to purchase a chicken each holiday. People identify scarcity and

greediness of merchants as major reasons of price rise during holidays.

7.5 Conclusion

This consumer research aims to provide a better insight in the

different types of consumer in Addis Ababa and the attitude towards

buying chicken and eggs. Different cultural traditions in which chicken

and eggs are playing a crucial role have been discussed. The research

furthermore shows market prices and what people are willing to pay.

Different indications for improvement have been provided by final

consumers, as well as by final sellers. This might contribute to a

more professional poultry industry in Ethiopia. On different parts

of the value chain suggestions have been provided, which could

be added to the Value Chain Analysis performed by the

Wageningen University & Research Centre.

7.5.1 Local markets

For this consumer research, information has been collected from

Ethiopian consumers on their consumption patterns of chicken and

eggs from the local markets. They also provided information on prefer-

ences, and their opinion on the current situation as well as the quality

of poultry products. 14 €1,00 = 22 Ethiopian Birr (July/August 2012)

Table 25 Prices paid by consumers

1 Bet

hel

2 Ko

lfe

3 G

erji

4 Bol

e Rw

and

a

5 As

co

6 L

afto

7 Si

mie

n M

aseg

adga

Aver

age

Aver

age

1st

rese

arch

How much do you pay for chicken

Range 70 - 10014 80-100 120-150 80-95 70-100 60-100 140-160

Mediate 85 92 140 86 87 83 153 104 104

What is the maximum you paid for a chicken?

Range 110-190 75-200 140-200 85-180 130-160 110-170 170-200

Mediate 153 165 172 116 144 140 190 154 143

How much do you pay for an egg now?

Range 2,6 – 3 2,6 – 3 2,4 – 2,5 2,5 – 2,6 2,7 – 2,8 2,45-2,6 2 – 2,6

Mediate 2,86 2,75 2,48 2,58 2,78 2,48 2,46 2,63 2,34

Table 24a Chicken consumption

Chicken consumption per year

25

20

15

10

5

01

orthodox

muslim

protestant

Egg consumption per month

70

65

60

55

501

orthodox

muslim

protestant

Table 24b Egg Consumption


7.6 Questionnaires

1.a Consumer Research 1

Market Name:

1 Income

husband

wife

2 Family size

children


3 Subcity & Kebele

4 Education

5 Current job

6 Religion

7 You buy chicken mostly at

local market

local shop

supermarket

grow own chicken

other

8 You buy eggs mostly at

local market

local shop

supermarket

grow own chicken

other

They also mentioned that chicken farmers might produce more,

but are not willing to do so in order to keep prices high.

They stated that in the future an increase of production would be good

for both the producer as the customer. Respondents hoped the govern-

ment will intervene strongly in the industry to break the monopoly of

merchants and wholesalers.

Sellers of poultry products on the local market lastly mentioned several

transport problems. Especially transport of living animals has not been

properly developed in Ethiopia, as animals are for example being

transported on top of (mini)busses or trucks for long distances.

7.5.2 Larger consumers

The international community is buying their poultry products mainly

in supermarkets rather than at local markets. Also various restaurants

prefer supermarkets or retailers rather than local markets. Main reasons

mentioned are related to the quality of the product and hygiene.

As for some of the restaurants chicken is their main dish supply and

quality need to be guaranteed. Most of the restaurants questioned

are providing to the international community or Ethiopians from the

higher income segment.

Larger consumers also stated that for them it is relevant to have a

regular supply throughout the year, since they are much less depend-

ing on the Ethiopian Orthodox tradition. The Hotels, restaurants and

café´s prefer Ferenj poultry product because of their larger volumes and

their higher quality standards. In contrast with local markets, prices

from large producers do not fluctuate so much, which guarantees less

risks of having to revise prices on menu´s too often.

Companies like McDonalds, Kentucky Fried Chicken and others are not

able to establish a franchise in Ethiopia yet, due to lack of HACCP

qualified meat production facilities. An initiative is being established

in the near future which will attract the big food chains to set up

franchise businesses in Ethiopia as well.

7.5.1.2 Customs in a regular Ethiopian family

People in Ethiopia are willing to pay a reasonable price for a good

product. Eggs are being sold, even if people have to pay 3 Ethiopian

Birr (€ 0,14per egg, while you can buy a bread for 1,20 Ethiopian Birr

(€0,06) only.

In Ethiopian culture it is very important to buy chicken alive, for which

people are willing to pay up to 170 Ethiopian Birr (€ 7,39) for a healthy

animal. In certain occasions people are slowly starting to use chickens

that are already dead and cleaned, even amongst Orthodox Ethiopians.

A dead and cleaned chicken can be bought for 85 Ethiopian Birr (€ 3,70)

and even when the chicken is cut into pieces and ready for use,

the price is still 90 Ethiopian Birr (€ 3,91) only.

A chicken dead and cleaned is cheaper to purchase than a

chicken bought alive at the local market. This is for most

consumers not a reason to buy a dead chicken.

Besides a preference for local chicken, the respondents in this research

also prefer the local chicken and eggs more than the so called ´ferenj´

products. Almost all participants stated that they preferred the taste of

local chicken and eggs, as it has more flavor. Moreover, the color of the

´ferenj´ egg is white inside, while the color of the local eggs has a nice

yellow egg yolk.

7.5.1.3 Opinions about scarcity

Many respondents stated that not enough chicken and eggs are

available, especially during the holidays. They also see this as

the explanation for the price increase of poultry products on

these occasions.


b Consumer Research 2

Market Name:

1 Income

husband

wife

2 Family size

children


3 Subcity & Kebele

4 Education

5 Current job

6 Religion

7 You buy chicken mostly at

local market

local shop

supermarket

grow own chicken

other

8 You buy eggs mostly at

local market

local shop

supermarket

grow own chicken

Other

9 Buy chicken

Alive

dead and cleaned

9 Buy chicken

alive

dead and cleaned

10 How much do you pay for a chicken now?

11 How much did you pay last year for a chicken?

12 What is the maximum you paid for a chicken?

13 How much do you pay for an egg now?

14 How much did you pay last year for an egg?

15 How much is the maximum of eggs you need during holidays?

16 How do you use chicken

17 How do you use eggs

18 Do you have chicken at home?

19 When yes, for what do you use them?

eggs

meat

other

20 Other remarks

THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION!


5 shops that sell eggs

10 sellers of chicken/eggs

1.c Vendor Research

1 Name market:

2 Subcity:

3 How many chicken sellers at this market:

4 How many egg sellers at the market

only eggs

little shop with many other items

5 From where do you get the chicken?

d/t local farmers

big organisation

other

6 Maximum sold in 1 day

7 Maximum price received for a chicken

8 Maximum price received for an egg

9 Who is buying chicken

local people

foreigners

restaurants/hotels

10 What is the best chicken

local

ferenj

11 What is the best egg

local

ferenj

12 When do you sell most of the chicken

13 When do you not sell chicken

10 How much do you pay for a chicken now?

11 How many chicken do you use per year?

12 What is the maximum you paid for a chicken?

13 How much do you pay for an egg now?

14 How many eggs do you use per month?

15 How much is the maximum of eggs you need during holidays?

16 How do you use chicken

17 How do you use eggs

18 Do you have chicken at home?

19 When yes, for what do you use them?

eggs

meat

other

20 Other remarks

THANK YOU FOR YOUR COOPERATION!


1 Name organisation main or branch:

2 Year established:

3 How many branches:

only AA

also other areas in

Ethiopia

4 From where do you get your supply?

5 Who is buying from you your eggs?

foreigners

diaspora

ethiopian higher income

6 Who are the major customers for chicken?

foreigners

diaspora

ethiopian higher income

7 Can you get enough chicken regularly

yes

no (why?)

14 When do you sell most of the eggs

15 When do you not sell eggs

16Can you get enough chicken to be sold

17 Can you get enough eggs to be sold

18 What are problems in consumption for

eggs

chicken

8 Can you get enough egg regularly

yes

no (why?)

9 What does the customer prefere

local chicken

ferenj chicken

10 Do customers by a whole chicken or specific parts?

11 What are problems in consumption for

eggs

chicken

12 How many chicken do you sell per day?

local chicken

ferenj chicken

13 What is the price of a chicken at the moment?

local chicken

ferenj chicken

14 How do you see the future of selling chicken?

15 How do you see the future of selling eggs?

16 How many eggs do you sell per day?

local egg

ferenj egg

17 What is the price of an egg at the moment?

local egg

ferenj egg

18 Other comments to be added


7.7 Research site

Research 1

1 Kera

2 Gurd Shola

3 Cherkos

4 Sheromeda

5 Simien Shola

6 Shola

7 Saris

8 Akaki

Research 2

9 Asco

10 Simien

11 Kolfe

12 Bethel

13 Bole Rwanda

14 Gerji

15 Lafto

1. Kera

3. Cherkos

6. Shola

7. Saris

2. Gurd Shola

9. Asco

10. Simien

12. Bethel

8. Akaki

4. Sheromeda

5. Simien

11. Kolfe

15. Lafto

14. Gerji

13. Bole R

Netherlands–African Business Council

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